MINOT, N.D. – Minot State University scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to break a 3-3 tie to win game 1 7-3 as the Beaver split against Northern State in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference baseball Tuesday at Corbett Field.

The Beavers (16-12 overall, 11-9 NSIC) stayed in fifth place in the NSIC with the split. MSU dropped game 2 to Northern State 12-3.

"We need to find a way to put it together for two straight games," MSU head coach Scott Eul said. "It's been tough for us to do that lately, but we've done it before this season, we just need to get back to that. We've been on our heels it seems in the second game and need to get back to our brand of baseball."

In game 1, Minot State scored three runs in the bottom of the first as Jordan Schulz and Michael Borst both drove in runs and cruised through five innings.

In the fifth, NSU (13-17, 6-12) scored two runs and tied it in the top of the sixth, but the Beavers rallied.

Celestino Rodriguez got things rolling in the sixth as he singled – his third of the game – with one out. After Geordie McDougall walked, Alexander Mack ran for Rodriguez and scored on Kyle Williamson's single threw the left side. Williamson stole second and he and McDougall scored as Trevaun Smith ripped a single up the middle. Smith later scored on a throwing error by Northern State to complete the rally.

The late runs lifted MSU starter Justin Demary to his fourth win of the season. Demary went the distance, giving up just seven hits and three runs while striking out six.

"Demary threw a nice game for us in the first one," Eul said. "He did a nice job of setting the tone early. We've shown we can battle and win in those kind of situations, winning games late like that."

Schulz finished with two hits and an RBI and Borst knocked in his team-leading 35th RBI.

Game 2 didn't go the Beavers way right from the get-go. MSU committed two errors in the first inning that helped lead the Wolves to five unearned runs to take a 5-0 lead.

The Wolves starting pitcher Nick Hoffard took that lead and ran with it, keeping the Beavers off balance for the win to improve to 3-4 on the year. He went 8.2 innings, giving up just seven hits and three runs.

MSU's Wyatt Schlosser was the only Beaver with more than one hit, finishing 3 for 4. Borst picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly, Smith hit his second HR of the season and Dylan Roach drove in a run in a pinch hit situation.

Reilly O'Rourke suffered the loss, going six innings allowing seven hits and eight runs, but just three were earned as MSU finished with three errors in the game.

The Beavers will finish off a 10-game homestand with a pair of double headers against Sioux Falls. The games have been moved up to Thursday and Friday due to forecast inclement weather for the Minot area Saturday. Game times have not been set.

About Minot State
Minot State University is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) and NCAA Division II offering 14 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletics programs. The NSIC is a premier NCAA DII, 16-member conference featuring teams in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Beavers are the only public NCAA Division II institution in the state of North Dakota.