Game 1: Missouri Valley 4, Evangel 3 | Box Score
Game 2: Missouri Valley 5, Evangel 3 | Box Score
Records: Evangel (10-11, 3-6); Missouri Valley (9-15, 2-8)
Location: Crusader Field

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Missouri Valley built three-run leads over Evangel in both ends of the two clubs' Heart Conference doubleheader Friday afternoon, each time withstanding late rallies by the home team to notch its first two league victories of the season.

Spencer Rankin went 4-for-6 with a pair of critical home runs to lead the Vikings, who also received a boost from a pitching staff that combined to limit Evangel to six runs on 12 hits in the twin bill.

Game 1 – MVC 4, Evangel 3
MVC notched its first conference win of the season behind Rankin's 3-for-3 day and the combined mound efforts of Jairo Santana and Tristen Sewell.

Evangel jumped on top via Patrick Gaul's leadoff home run in the first inning, but Santana and Sewell teamed up to blank the home club until a two-out seventh-inning rally gave EU life.

After EU starter Bret Hoffman (3-3) faced the minimum through two innings, the Vikings broke through with a two-run rally in the third to grab a 2-1 advantage. Steve Reinig singled and scored on an Evangel throwing error, before Kameron Armstrong plated a second run with a one-out base hit.

Reinig started another MVC threat in the fifth, drawing a leadoff walk before moving to third via a Rankin single and a Mitch Rhoades sacrifice, before Armstrong's fly ball to right brought home the third Vikings run.

Evangel threatened in three straight innings against Sewell (1-4), who took over for Santana after 3 2/3 innings. But the MVC lefty worked his way out of trouble each time, stranding a pair of EU baserunners in each frame.

Rankin powered a one-out, solo shot over the wall in left for the first of his two homers on the day in the seventh inning, giving the Vikings a 4-1 edge.

EU mounted a two-out rally in its final turn at-bat, using a Jason Jarrell single and a pair of walks to set up Belcher's two-run single that brought the potential tying run to within 90 feet of home plate.

But Dieterich Guertzgen blew a third strike past Grant Kosanke to secure the final out of the contest, as well as his second save of the season.

Belcher led EU with a two-hit, two-RBI game in which he reached base safely in all four of his trips to the plate.

Game 2 – MVC 5, Evangel 3
The Vikings completed the sweep with a big sixth-inning rally to snap a 2-2 deadlock, as Joshua Simon's RBI single brought in the go-ahead run and Josias Mogollon (1-3) turned in 3 2/3 innings of strong relief to earn the victory.

Rankin followed his breakout performance in game one with a key two-out, two-run homer in the second inning to stake MVC to a 2-0 lead. After EU battled back with a pair of fourth-inning runs to even the score, the Vikings then put their first four batters aboard to spark their sixth-inning surge.

Alex Letcher went 2-for-3 for the game and started the game's key rally with a leadoff single for MVC in the sixth. After back-to-back walks loaded the bases, Simon slashed a base hit through the right side of the EU infield to bring in Letcher with the go-ahead tally.

A wild pitch allowed the second MVC run to score in the sixth, but Austin Dill (4-2) induced an inning-ending double-play grounder to keep the margin at two runs.

The Vikings added to their lead on a Cameron Duke RBI single in the seventh, before EU mounted another late-inning threat in the home half of the inning. A walk to Belcher, coupled with singles by Kosanke and Dalton Cook loaded the bases, and Gaul cut the deficit to 5-3 with a base hit to left.

Mogollon bounced back to retire Noah Suiter on a fly ball to center, before coaxing a pop-up to right off the bat of Yates for the game-clinching out.

Kosanke and Gaul each turned in two-hit games for EU, while Dill fanned eight and allowed just two earned runs in his 5.2 innings.

Up Next
Evangel and Missouri Valley conclude their series with a Noon doubleheader Saturday (March 27) at Crusader Field.

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