Brady Beckman hit a walk-off two run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to give Nebraska Wesleyan a 5-3 victory over Hastings College in the first game of a Great Plains Athletic Conference baseball doubleheader on Saturday afternoon (Apr. 3) in Lincoln, Neb. Hastings bounced back to win game two, 12-5.
Beckman had a huge day to lead the Prairie Wolves to victory as he went 3-3 with two RBI and only needed a double to complete the cycle. He tripled in the bottom of the second to score the first NWU run. In the fifth inning he drew a bases loaded walk to bring in the second run.
NWU (6-7, 2-4 GPAC) led 2-0 going into the sixth inning as starting pitcher Zane Cascini had allowed just one hit. In the top of the sixth, the Broncos (9-18, 4-4 GPAC) got to Cascini for four hits and scored three runs to take a 3-2 lead.
The Prairie Wolves answered in the bottom of the sixth as Griffin DePriest drew a leadoff walk. He moved to second on a sacrifice then Andy McGowan drove him in with a two out RBI double to left center. JJ Thaut pinch ran for McGowan and was the go-ahead run at second base, but got caught trying to steal third base to end the inning.
Cascini shut down the Broncos in the top of the seventh to give NWU a chance to win it. With one out, Cory Hilgenkamp doubled to centerfield on a ball that was misplayed by the outfielder due to the wind. After a strikeout, Beckman stepped to the plate with two outs. He sent a towering fly ball to right field and the wind helped carry it over the wall for the game-winning hit.
Cascini his third win of the season in the complete game victory allowing five hits and three runs with four strikeouts. Beckman had three of NWU's six hits in the game.
Hastings took advantage of five NWU errors and hit two home runs to get the 12-5 win in game two. The Broncos scored three runs in the top of the first off NWU starter Chris Wahl.
The Prairie Wolves responded with two runs in the bottom of the first. Hastings scored one in the second, but NWU added three in the second to take a 5-4 lead. Josh Ostrom had a two-run triple for the big hit of the inning.
NWU would not score again, as they would manage just four more hits off Hastings starter A.J. Clark. The Broncos scored three in the fourth, one in the fifth and four more in the seventh inning.
Wahl took the loss for NWU going 3 2/3 innings allowing seven runs (four earned) on seven hits.
At the plate, Cory Hilgenkamp, Derek Erb-Woods and Andy McGowan all had two hits. Ostrom had three RBI.
NWU will be back in GPAC action on Monday (Apr. 5) in a makeup game at Concordia.
