Baseball Wins Twice in Non-Conference Play

Kansas City, Kan., (Feb. 24, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College baseball team traveled to Kansas City, Kan., for a pair of non-conference games, Saturday afternoon.  The Vikings held off Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) in the first game for a 6-3 win, and followed by pulling away from Dickinson State (N.D.) in a 7-1 victory.

To open the Dakota Wesleyan game, Sophomore Pitcher Mason Fenwick (Mississauga, Ontario) faced the minimum in the top of the first inning, and received some run-support in the bottom half.  Senior Centerfielder Ivory Daniels (Little Rock, Ark.) walked to open the Viking at-bat, stole second base, and reached third on a passed ball.  Junior Rightfielder Hiroto Kobayashi (Saitama, Japan) drove Daniels home on a sac-fly, later in the inning, and MVC held a 1-0 advantage.  Fenwick took down Dakota Wesleyan in order in the second inning, striking out one batter.  Missouri Valley added to its lead in the bottom of the second, as Junior First Baseman Joe Hedger (Logan, Iowa) belted out a solo homer to make it a 2-0 score.  Dakota Wesleyan threatened in the third with a pair of two-out walks, but Fenwick got out of the jam with an inning-ending strikeout to strand the runners.  The Vikings produced from the plate in the bottom half, which featured a one-out single from Freshman Leftfielder Mason Baer (Roselle, Ill.), who later stole third base.  Kobayashi brought home Baer with another sac-fly, and the lead sat at 3-0.

After another scoreless inning pitched by Fenwick in the top of the fourth, Missouri Valley created more offense in the bottom of the inning.  Hedger and Junior Catcher Connor Bell (San Diego, Calif.) both reached safely, and with two outs, Daniels worked a walk to load the bases.  Baer then scored Hedger from third with another walk, and the MVC advantage sat at 4-0.  Dakota Wesleyan put together a long at-bat in the fifth, using two runs, one walk and two errors to score three runs and cut the deficit to 4-3.  The Vikings got two of those runs back in the bottom of the fifth, which included Senior Shortstop Josias Mogollon (Bloomfield, Iowa) scoring Kobayashi with a single, and Bell bringing home Mogollon with another sac-fly.  Missouri Valley had bases loaded in the inning, but left the runners stranded as the lead sat at 6-3.  Senior Pitcher Ty Ellis (Kennett, Mo.) kept Dakota Wesleyan scoreless in the top of the sixth, and Junior Pitcher Caleb Bergman (Alma, Mo.) worked around a leadoff single in the seventh inning to strand the runner and preserve the 6-3 victory.

Hedger finished with two hits, two runs scored and one RBI with his solo homerun.  Mogollon and Baer each totaled one hit, one RBI and one run scored.  Daniels worked three walks and scored one run, while Kobayashi had two RBI's and one run scored.  Fenwick picked up the win, going 4.2 innings with three hits, three earned runs and four strikeouts. 

The second game of the day against Dickinson State (N.D.) featured some early production from the plate by Missouri Valley in the top of the first inning.  Daniels doubled, but was thrown out at home later in the at-bat.  With two outs, Kobayashi reached safely on a single, but an error on the play allowed Baer to score safely, and put the team in front, 1-0.  Senior Pitcher Dieterich Guertzgen (De Soto, Mo.) worked around a two-out walk and double to strikeout the next batter and leave both runners stranded.  The top of the second inning started with a single from Mogollon, who eventually reached third.  He came home later in the bat-bat, and Daniels belted out a two-run home to stretch the advantage to 4-0.  Missouri Valley tacked on another run in the third, as Mogollon singled to bring home Kobayashi and make it a 5-0 score.  Guertzgen followed by facing the minimum in the bottom half of the inning.

Dickinson State threatened in the fourth, loading the bases, but Guertzgen got out of the jam with a fly-out to strand all three runners.  Missouri Valley added to its lead in the top of the sixth, as Sophomore Pinch Runner Nick Jeffries (Jefferson City, Mo.) came home on a grounder from Daniels.  Guertzgen kept Dickinson State from producing at the plate in the bottom of the sixth, striking out one batter and taking down the lineup in order.  The Vikings added one more run in the seventh inning, as Ellis singled to score Hedger.  The bottom of the seventh featuring DSU producing one run on one hit and one error, but Guertzgen finished out the complete game to seal the 7-1 victory for Missouri Valley.

Mogollon and Kobayashi each totaled three hits, one run scored and one RBI.  Daniels had two hits, one run and three RBI's, while Hedger had two hits and one run.  Guertzgen went the complete-game, giving up five hits with no earned runs and three strikeouts.

The pair of wins move Missouri Valley to 4-2 on the season.

Up next, the Vikings will play one more game in Kansas City, Kan., against Dickinson State, Sunday at 12:30 p.m., at Homefield Baseball Complex.

Dakota Wesleyan Box Score-Click Here

Dickinson State Box Score-Click Here

ABOUT MISSOURI VALLEY COLLEGE

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.