Hogan's gem helps Blue Hawks snap Dakota State's 21-game winning streak

Sagan Osborne | Dickinson State Sports Information Director

DICKINSON, N.D. – Dickinson State snapped Dakota State's 21-game win streak with a 2-1 victory in game four, but DaSU took the four-game NSAA series 3-1 over the weekend.

GAME 1

The Blue Hawks jumped out to a 2-0 lead on an RBI triple by Dawson Cortese in the bottom of the third inning deep into the right field gap. After two quick outs, Keanu Calamayan worked a walk and Balas Buckmaster singled to left field setting the stage for Cortese.

Blue Hawk starter Kobe Krenz worked around a lot of traffic in the first three innings to hold the Trojans scoreless, but in the top of the fourth inning, soft contact came back to bite DSU as Dakota State was able to push across three runs to take a 3-2 lead. An RBI single in the fifth inning extended the DaSU lead to 4-2, but an RBI single by Buckmaster and an RBI fielder's choice by Cortese in the bottom half of the inning knotted the score at 4-4 heading into the sixth inning.

The one error the Blue Hawks committed on the came ended up a costly one in the sixth inning as a lead off walk, and an error on a steal attempt, allowed a one-out fly ball to be a sacrifice fly giving Dakota State the lead again, 5-4. The Blue Hawks were unable to get a runner into scoring position the rest of the way as the Trojans took game one.

Buckmaster led the Blue Hawk offense with a 3-3 day while Cortese drove in 3 of the 4 DSU runs.

GAME 2

The Blue Hawk bats were silenced in game two as they managed just two hits in an 8-0 loss.

Four first inning runs set the tone for Dakota State who took advantage of early walks and hit by pitches to take a commanding lead before DSU took their first at bat. Balas Buckmaster singled with two outs in the first, Wyatt Wilharm doubled to lead off the second, and Cade Ostenson walked with two-outs, but Dickinson State didn't get a baserunner the rest of the way in the loss.

GAME 3

An early four-run inning was again the story in game three, as Dakota State took advantage of a pair of Blue Hawk errors to score four runs in the second inning, and added three more in the third, to take control of game three early and cruise to an 8-2 victory.

A two-out RBI single by Alberto Nieto in the bottom of the fifth inning got a run back for Dickinson State, and an RBI ground out by Dawson Cortese in the seventh made it 7-2 Dakota State, but that was all DSU would get as the stout Dakota State pitching staff shut down any threats the Blue Hawks could muster.

Nieto and Derrick Calvillo both had multi-hit games for the Blue Hawks to lead the offense, while Jonathan Lerma pitched well in relief, going 5.0 innings and allowing just one run on 4 hits, while striking out three and walking two.

GAME 4

Senior Brannan Hogan turned in his best performance of the season in his final regular season game at Dakota Community Bank & Trust Ballpark to lead Dickinson State to a 2-1 victory in game four, ending Dakota State's NAIA leading 21-game win streak (19 in NSAA play),

Derrick Calvillo led of the bottom of the first inning with a single, Balas Buckmaster singled, and Wyatt WIlharm was a hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs for the Blue Hawks. Kobe Krenz then hit a hard ground ball that was mishandled by the DaSU second baseman leading to the first DSU run of the game. Dawson Cortese followed with another hard ground ball that was mishandled but the Trojan defense allowing another run to score and DSU to take a quick 2-0 lead.

That was plenty for Hogan, as he allowed just one run on 4 hits over 6.0+ stellar innings to keep the Blue Hawks in front. With a strikeout to start the top of the sixth inning, Hogan tied the DSU career strikeout record with 157, he will look to take the outright record next week against WaldorF University in his home state of Iowa.

After a leadoff single just inside the third base bag chased Hogan in the seventh inning, the Blue Hawks turned to flame throwing closer Gabe Lundbeck to slam the door. A popped up bunt just landed over the head of Wilharm at third base gave DaSU runners on first and second with no one out, but a sacrifice bunt moved up both runners in exchange for the first out. After a hit by pitch loaded the bases, Lundbeck came up huge for Dickinson State getting a strikeout and a pop out to seal the win for the Blue Hawks.