The Gophers won two of three games for the second weekend in a row to defeat Georgia State in a road series.
Minnesota (7-3) defeated the Panthers 3-0 on Friday and 11-6 on Sunday, but the team lost on Saturday 4-3 after allowing a 10th-inning walk-off home run.
Junior pitcher Matt Fiedler took the mound for his third start of the year Friday and pitched a complete game shutout. He faced 29 batters, allowing just two hits while tallying six strikeouts. He issued only two walks and moved to 2-1 on the season.
“I had a lot of fun during that game. I was really just able to do it throwing all four pitches I had for strikes,” Fiedler said.
The Gophers scored their first run in the top of the first inning with an RBI single by sophomore third baseman Micah Coffey, and junior catcher Austin Athmann and senior outfielder Dan Motl each hit a solo home run to give the team a three-run lead.
Minnesota outhit Georgia State 11-5 on Saturday and erased a two-run deficit to force extra innings but still lost the second game of the series.
Sophomore Will Kilgore hit the deciding home run for the Panthers and batted in all four of Georgia State’s runs.
Athmann and freshman shortstop Terrin Vavra each recorded three hits in the game, and starting pitcher Dalton Sawyer gave up three earned runs in five innings of work.
The Gophers bounced back with an 11-6 victory Sunday, putting up five runs in the fifth inning and three in the ninth to take control of the rubber match.
Minnesota collected 16 hits from nine players, including a solo home run from Coffey and a three-run home run off the bat of freshman Eddie Estrada.
“[We’re getting] a solid contribution from everyone in the lineup. It’s not just the starters. It’s guys coming off of the bench,” Motl said. “Eddie Estrada [on Sunday] hadn’t had an at-bat in a while and hits a three-run home run. That was huge in the game.”
Junior pitcher Tyler Hanson picked up his second victory of the season in the game after allowing four earned runs in five innings.
