MANKATO, Minn. - The Martin Luther College baseball team was unable to hold a late lead at Bethany Lutheran College in an 11-4 loss Sunday afternoon.

The Vikings hit four home runs on the day, including three in the seventh inning, to come from behind and put the game away.

MLC fell behind 3-0 on a three-run home run by BLC's Brandyn Olsen in the second inning, but the Knights were able to rally back. Dillon Solomon drove in the first MLC run thanks to a BLC miscue, and the Knights took a 4-3 lead in the sixth inning after a two-run Jason Lindemann home run, followed by a James Hemmelman single that scored Jonathan Kock to give MLC a one-run lead.

BLC came back in the bottom of the seventh inning, however, hitting back-to-back-to-back home runs off MLC reliever Travis Kretsch, the first of which came with a pair of Vikings on base, to take an 8-4 lead. The Vikings added three more in the eighth to put the game out of reach for the Knights heading into the final inning.

Hemmelman started on the mound for MLC, allowing three runs and six hits while striking out five in four innings. Kretsch took the loss in relief, allowing five runs on six hits in 2.1 innings, dropping his record to 0-2 on the season.

Lindemann led the MLC hitters with his two runs batted in, and the home run was his first of the season (and second of his career). Erich Osterman, Nate Goelzer, Jacob Schultz, Kock and Hemmelman also had one hit apiece.

MLC fell to 2-8 on the season in defeat, while BLC improved its record to 2-10 on the season. The game was a non-conference game that did not count towards the UMAC standings.

The Knights are scheduled to return to action tomorrow (Monday, April 4), when they travel to Gustavus for a doubleheader. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.