COON RAPIDS, Minn. - The Martin Luther College baseball team swept North Central in a doubleheader Wednesday by the scores of 9-7 and 6-3.

GAME 1

The Knights were able to escape a ninth-inning jam to hold on for a 9-7 win in game one.

NCU took an early lead thanks to three runs in the first inning, but MLC starting pitcher Jonathan Kock was able to settle in from there. Kock pitched all nine innings, allowing seven runs (five earned) on 15 hits while striking out three as he improved to 2-6 on the season.

The offense took control of the game for MLC, scoring at least once in five separate innings. Grant Hagen drove in two with a single in the second inning, and Karl Kuschel and Jacob Schultz drove in runs to give the Knights a 5-4 lead in the third.

The Rams tied the game 5-5 in the fourth inning, but the Knights took the lead for good with a two-run double by Kock in the sixth frame that scored James Hemmelman and Jason Lindemann. 

MLC would add insurance runs in the eighth and ninth inning, which came in handy as the Rams put two runners on base in the bottom of the ninth before Kock and the MLC defense got out of the jam to seal the win.

GAME 2

MLC completed the sweep with a 6-3 game two win.

Hemmelman starred on the mound for MLC in the nightcap, holding the Rams to only three runs on seven hits in nine innings to improve to 1-3 on the season.

The Knights scored all six runs in the first three innings. Jared Lindemann opened the scoring with a two-run single in the first inning, and Kuschel provided a boost with a two-run double in the third to give MLC a 6-0 lead.

Hemmelman was able to hold NCU off the scoreboard in the first seven innings, but the Rams rallied to score three in the eighth to cut the MLC lead to 6-3. That would be as close as they would get, however, as Hemmelman retired NCU in order in the ninth to preserve the win.

MLC improved its record to 4-18 overall and 2-6 in UMAC play with the two wins. NCU fell to 3-23 on the season and 0-8 in league play with the two defeats.

The Knights will return to action on Saturday, April 23, when they host St. Scholastica. That doubleheader is scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m.