The Malone University baseball team finished up its annual Arizona spring break trip with a 7-5 triumph over Northern State University (SD) Saturday morning in Tucson. With the win, Malone improved to 5-6 on the season.
 
Recap:
Following an RBI single in the top of the second off the bat of Ryan Froman, the Mustangs, who came into the matchup averaging 15 runs a game, tallied four runs in the bottom of the second to take a 4-1 lead.
 
Malone would tack on a run in the third and two more in the fourth to tie it up at 4-4. Pioneer starter Josh Hurford, a 2015 All-GLIAC Second Team selection, settled down after a rough second inning to hold Northern St scoreless over the next two innings.
 
Relieving Hurford, lefthanded sophomore Roscoe Blackburn shut out the powerful NSU lineup in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings. Malone meanwhile, took the lead on an RBI double from Brenden Wells in the sixth.
 
Senior third baseman Jon Crank continued his power surge with his third homerun in five days; a two-run bomb in the top of the seventh that put Malone ahead 7-4.
 
The Mustangs' Matt Stubbs hit his second homer of the game in the bottom of the eighth but Blackburn (4IP, 1 ER, 3K) kept the rest of the lineup in check to maintain the 7-5 lead.
 
Malone senior closer Gary Lawrence allowed the first two batters to reach base in the bottom of the ninth but struck out the next two batters before inducing a game ending groundout to preserve the 7-5 victory and pick up his first save of the season.
 
Richie Mast led Malone with his second straight three-hit game while Brenden Wells added three hits of his own and two runs scored. Matt Davis, Derek Carmichael, and Froman provided two hits apiece. Crank finished with three RBI.
 
Up Next:
The Pioneers will travel to Beckley, WV to meet Findlay University on Friday, March 18th for a nine-inning contest at 4:00 pm before a doubleheader on Saturday, March 19th beginning at noon.