MSU baseball succumbs

There were a number of reasons the Minnesota State baseball team dropped its NCAA Division II College World Series opener 8-6 to Southern Indiana last night. Among them were an inability to get its offense going until the ninth inning and a defense that did not defend the bunt very well.

The biggest reason, however, was starter Bret Mitchell's inability to control his curve ball. The right-hander, who has a sharp breaker that starts high and drops down dramatically, was bouncing balls on or in front of the plate all game.

He ended up with five walks and had to leave in the sixth when USI staged its second three-run rally of the game. Had his control been on, it might have been a completely different game. Mitchell, by the way, finished with eight strikeouts to set an MSU single-season record with 108.

Mankato native Steve Helget had a great game for the Mavericks. Not only was he 4 for 4 with a double, but he snared or knocked down just about every errant pitch thrown by Mitchell.

The Mavericks play an elimination game at 2 p.m. (CST) Tuesday against Franklin Pierce in Cary, N.C.

On the local docket today, Chad Courrier is at the Big Nine Conference girls golf tournament at North Links. Rumor has it Mankato East's Sarah Brozik will be making her first appearance of the season after suffering a torn ACL in January during a basketball game.

I will be at a first-round Section 2A boys tennis tournament match in St. Peter. The 4:30 p.m. dual pits the Saints against Minneapolis Washburn. Looking forward to seeing Mitch Elofson and the Huber boys play for the first time this year.