Box Score (picture courtesy, Ryan Coleman, d3photography.com)

The Piper baseball team seemed on the verge of getting out of the Metrodome on an even keel Monday night. But UW-Stout rallied for three runs in the last of the seventh inning for a 5-4 victory and a sweep of the non-conference doubleheader. The Blue Devils won the opener, 6-1.

Dan Ellefson was a hard luck losing pitcher in game 2. For six innings, he held the Blue Devils in check, walking nobody and fanning five. But a walk, an infield single, a single and then a gamewinning three run doble did him in and evened his record for the season at 1-1.

Despite having just three hits, HU crafted a pair of two run innings to take a 4-2 lead after five innings. In the fourth, they combined a hit by pitch, a single, a double steal and a sacrifice fly for two runs to open the scorng. UWS tied it up in the bottom of the inning but HU went right back ahead in the fifth on a wild pitch and Jordan Buck's RBI double. 

That held up until the last inning.

In the opener, UWS broke up a scoreless tie by scoring in the final four innings to deal Matt Eickman his first loss. Harley Thompson was responsible for the lone Piper run when he doubled, moved to third on a grounder and scored on a passed ball in the fifth inning.

Hamline, now 3-2 overall, returns to the Metrodome on Wednesday, March 6 to face the U of Minnesota in a single, nine inning game. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Last year, the Pipers battled the Golden Gophers for four hours and 16 innings before dropping a 3-2 decision.