PITTSBURG, Kan.– The Minot State University baseball team opened up the 2014 season Saturday afternoon as they faced Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference foe, Wayne State College, in non-conference action.

MISU fell to the Wildcats twice in the season debut double-header, falling in game one 17-1 before dropping game two 7-6 on a walk off hit by Wayne State.

In the first game, junior college transfer Joshua Larsen (Jr., P, Surrey, British Columbia) took the mound for the Beavers in his first NCAA Division II game. Larsen allowed six earned runs in his MISU debut as he pitched into the fifth inning of a 2-1 game, before giving up a grand slam, knocking him out of the game.

Newcomers Brad Rolff (Jr., Inf., North Fork, Calif.) and Nicholas Hammerl (Jr., Inf., West Peoria, Ill.) each picked up their first hits in a Minot State uniform. Rolff had the lone Run Batted In for the Beavers as he roped a double to the right-center gap, plating teammate Tyler Stevenson (Sr., OF, Cheyenne, Wyo.).

"It was a decent game going into the fifth inning," said Minot State head coach Brock Weppler. "That grand slam really hurt us and they were really able to break it open from there. Our pitchers just didn't execute. We threw the fastball too much and we left it belt high too often."

In the latter game, another MISU debut was made by Brock McCashland (Jr., P, Ogden, Utah) as he pitched the Beavers into the fifth inning after giving up a run in the first inning. McCashland kept the Wildcats tamed from there on out as he turned over a 6-2 lead to the bullpen.

It was in the late innings that haunted the Beavers as WSC scored three runs in the sixth and two runs in the seventh to steal the win out of the hands of Minot State.

"We need to execute better at the plate," said Weppler. "We had too many situations where we didn't get quality at bats in key situations. We are hitting good and I am happy with our approach, but we just need to do some of the little things better, which can make a difference from win or loss.

"I thought Brock (McCashland) had a good game for us. He stayed low and attacked the zone really well which is a really good sign for him. That is something I want to see more of from our staff."

In the loss, Andrew Roach (Jr., OF, Gilbert, Ariz.), Connor Moughton (Sr., C, Victoria, British Columbia) and Ricco Walker (Jr., OF, Oakland, Calif.) all hit doubles for Minot State.

The Beavers will look to rebound with their season's first win as they face Wayne State College in another double-header on Sunday afternoon from Pittsburg, Kan.

– GO BEAVERS –