By David Richards (Contact) | Austin Daily Herald

Published Monday, April 13, 2009

The Riverland baseball team held its own against one of the top teams in both the state and the country Saturday. The Blue Devils split a doubleheader against Dakota County Technical College, losing the first game 7-1 and winning the second game 7-4. DCTC is ranked No. 1 in Minnesota and No. 9 in the nation.

“This team was pretty darn good,” said Riverland coach Scott Koenigs. “We kind of just went out and proved that we are one of the top teams in the state and that we are a force to be reckoned with.”

In game 1, the Blue Devils (18-7 overall, 2-2 MCAC South) secured one run on six hits. Brandon Huhn led Riverland with a two for three performance at the plate and boasted a sacrifice and an RBI. Kyle Starkey, Jeff Huth, Chris Lindemann and Shane Lang also had hits for the Blue Devils.

Zach Vlietstra continues to be a base stealing threat for Riverland and added one in each game Saturday. He is now 25 for 25 this season.

“He runs the bases well,” Koenigs said. “I just let him go. He’s got the green light all the time.”

In game two, the Blue Devils found themselves down 3-1 in the sixth inning, but rallied with a four-run sixth to secure the win.

Zach Prins was the winning pitcher for Riverland, and Andy Behnke went two for four, with a run scored and two runs batted in. Starkey, Vlietstra, Huhn, Brian Voigt and Lindemann each had hits for the Blue Devils.

“It was great,” Koenigs said. “It was a great performance by our guys. We did not roll over. Hitting is contagious, and our guys did a good job.”

Riverland, which hosts Western Wisconsin for a doubleheader today, is now 6-3 against nationally ranked teams this year.