SAINT PETER, Minn. - After a slow first game, Gustavus baseball got back to winning ways, topping the Johnnies, 9-6. Sophomore duo Jackson Golberg (Prior Lake, Minn.) and Charles Gearen (Minneapolis, Minn.) led the offense, going 5-for-5 and having four RBI, respectively.

The split on Wednesday maintains the Gusties slight all-time advantage over Saint John's, moving to 52-51 all-time.

Gustavus 0, Saint John's 4

The Gusties struggled on the plate in Game 1, only finding three hits in the opener. After two innings and allowing two runs, junior Cole Spitzer (Minneapolis, Minn.) was relieved by sophomore Logan Feeney (Le Sueur, Minn.) who went five innings and also allowed two runs, but also allowed the same amount of hits as Spitzer. 

Saint John's found their first two of the day in the second inning, starting with a single to center field. The second came after two bunt singles which loaded the bases and the ensuing walk doubled the Johnnie lead. 

It took until the fourth inning for the Gusties to find the first base bag, when junior Brayden Kohls (Norwood, Minn.) singled to center field to open the inning. Kohls only got as far as second, though, as two fly outs and a ground out could not bring home the junior. 

Saint John's found their last two runs of the game on the same play, an RBI single down the right field line in the sixth inning. Kohls once again reached base in the second, but followed the same fate. Gustavus went three up, three down in the seventh, giving Saint John's a Game 1 win, 4-0. 

Kohls led the Gusties with two hits, while only junior Daniel Dahl (St. Paul, Minn.) could find another hit. Gustavus was sat down on strikes seven times and left four runners on base. 

The fourth, fifth, and sixth innings all brought one hit for the Gusties, but an 0-for-6 clip with runners on base would not suffice in the first game. 

Gustavus 9, Saint John's 6

The second game of the day brought the scoring that the first game lacked for Gustavus, using seven runs in the back half of the game to top the Johnnies. 

After two innings, it was, once again, 2-0 in favor of Saint John's, but this time around, the Gusties pushed back with two runs themselves in the fourth inning. With two outs, Dahl got the party going, doubling down the right field line to score sophomore Jackson Golberg (Prior Lake, Minn.). Just the next at-bat, sophomore designated hitter Cade Kimmes (Hampton, Minn.) returned the favor and brought Dahl home, evening the score at two through four. 

After a scoreless frame from both teams, Gustavus turned on the jets, starting with a lead-off triple by Golberg, who ended the game with a 5-for-5 clip. After a walk and steal to put two in scoring position, sophomore Charles Gearen (Minneapolis, Minn.) did his job and brought home both runs to give the Gusties their first lead of the afternoon. Two outs later, junior catcher Dylan Kopesky (Mankato, Minn.) brought home Gearen, pushing the score to 5-2 with three to play. 

The Johnnies would not go silently into the night though, finding three runs for themselves in the top half of the seventh inning and evening the score at five just as quickly. After the balancing act, the bottom half was where the Gusties proved insurmountable, scoring three runs again. In the same situation as the inning before, Gearen cleared the bases again and scored Golberg and Kohls. Kimmes found his second RBI of the game after a single by Dahl, bringing home Gearen to score the eighth run of the day. Kohls put his stamp on the game in the bottom of the eighth, hitting a solo bomb with two outs to give Gustavus the win. 

Golberg led all players in Game 2, going 5-for-5 and scoring three runs for the Gusties. Both Golberg and Kimmes stole two bags and Gearen was responsible for four runners touching home. Junior Benny McDonald (Blaine, Minn.) started on the mound for Gustavus, giving up five earned runs, eight hits, and six shutouts in the win. Sophomore Logan Grinnell (Victoria, Minn.) earned the save, going 1.1 innings in relief and only needing 10 pitches for two strikeouts. 

With the series split, Gustavus maintains the all-time winning record over the Johnnies at 52-51. This is the first series split between the teams since 2023, when the teams split in Collegeville. 

After getting back to winning ways, the Gusties take the weekend off and prepare for a doubleheader at 2:30 p.m. on Monday at Hamline.  
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