The Buena Vista baseball team moved its overall win streak up to six while taking a pair of games from visiting Loras College on Saturday, as the Beavers began Iowa Conference play by taking the field at home for the first time this season.
In the opener, senior Justin Lange was strong on the mound, despite giving up a late three-run home run in the seventh. He went the distance and allowed four earned runs on eight hits, while striking out eight and walking three. The game was BVU's 100th home contest since the installation of its field turf. With the two wins today, it is now 71-30 during that stretch.
Brandon Wessels doubled home the game's first run in the first and later came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Cameron Johnson, as BVU built an early 2-0 lead.
The Duhawks pushed across their first run an inning later on a safety squeeze, but that was their first real scoring threat until a three-run home run in the seventh cut into BVU's 7-1 lead.
Neil Marshall delivered with a two-run single during a four-run fourth, while Wessels and Johnson each doubled home runs to give BVU a six-run cushion.
Wessels went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles while scoring three times and driving in two. Johnson also finished with two hits and two RBI. The Beavers were outhit 8-7 in the contest.
BVU again jumped on the board quick in game two, plating a pair of first inning runs to take a 2-0 lead. Marshall led off the game with his first home run of the year before Cam Johnson added a sacrifice fly later in the frame.
An RBI single from Tanner Truesdell in the third pushed the lead to 3-0 before Ryan Koester hit his and Loras' second home run of the year in the fourth to make it 3-1.
The Beavers, who entered the day leading the IIAC in home runs, added to that total again in the fifth as Wessels and Truesdell went back-to-back to make it 6-1. Wessels was a two-run shot and was his second of the year.
Loras then made it a 6-4 game with three runs in the sixth off reliever Kendall Hazel before Wes Onken came on with two outs to get the Beavers out of the jam. Onken went on to work the final three innings to record his team-leading fifth save of the year.
Wessels went 2-for-4 with a double and home run, and added two RBI and a pair of run scored. Truesdell also chimed in with two hits and two RBI.
Jacob Hadaway got the start for BVU and worked five innings, allowing just one run on four hits, while striking out six and walking four. Hazell surrendered three unearned runs over just two-third of an inning before Onken issued just two hits in his 3.1 innings.
Buena Vista improves to 11-3 overall (2-0 IIAC) and will look to win the series on Sunday when the two teams return to the field for a doubleheader that is scheduled to start at 1:00pm.