The Malone University baseball team stretched its winning streak to five in a row on Thursday with victories of 10-9 and 6-2 over Northern State (SD) University at the Tucson Invitational.

The Pioneers, now 6-3 overall, will be back in action in Arizona on Friday with a 1:00 p.m. MST (3:00 p.m. EST) twinbill against Southwestern Minnesota State University.  The Mustangs will provide live stats during both contests at http://livestats.smsu.edu/baseball/

Game One Recap
After falling behind 3-1 early on in the opener, a big six-run outburst in the fourth inning helped the Pioneers grab an 8-3 lead.  Rightfielder Matt Wheeler led off the frame with Malone's first home run of the season.  An RBI groundout by leftfielder Keanan Locke and RBI singles by centerfielder Brenden Wells and designated hitter Matt Davis brought home additional runs before Wheeler capped the fourth-inning barrage with a run-scoring single.

A two-out, three-run triple brought the Wolves to within 8-7 in the bottom of fifth.  NSU then strung together  a pair of doubles and a single to regain the lead at 9-8 in the sixth. 

However, Malone fought back once more.  A fielding miscue brought home the tying run in the top of the seventh.  Wells then stepped to the plate and drove home the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly to right.

Northern State threatened in the bottom of the seventh, but Pioneer reliever Gary Lawrence, who had entered the game with one out in the sixth inning, worked out of a bases-loaded jam, striking out the final batter of the game to secure the 10-9 triumph and earn his first victory of the season (1-0). 

Left-hander Tyler Whitlatch started on the mound and tossed the first 4.1 innings before giving way to reliever Branden Carey.

The Pioneers racked up 14 hits in the contest.  Davis went 3-for-4 with a double.  Wells registered two hits and drove in three runs from the leadoff spot.  Wheeler, Locke, first baseman Chad Neff and second baseman Richie Mast all added two hits apiece.

Game Two Recap
The Pioneers scored in each of the first five innings to grab a 6-0 edge in game two.  The Wolves posted solo runs in the sixth and seventh frames but it wasn't enough to overcome the early deficit.

Right-hander Joe Costello picked up the win (1-1) after yielding just one base hit and striking out 10 through the first five innings.

Malone tallied nine hits in the finale, led by third baseman Jon Crank, who went 3-for-4 with a solo homer and an RBI single.  Wells added a pair of singles and a stolen base, giving him at least one base hit in all nine games so far this season.