By Herald staff (Contact) | Austin Daily Herald

Originally published 11:29 p.m., April 28, 2009
Updated 11:29 p.m., April 28, 2009

The Riverland baseball team had it’s 15-game winning streak snapped, but all was well when the Blue Devils learned they had the No. 1 seed in the upcoming state tournament and they became co-MCAC South Champs for the first time in 28 years.

“We’ve been getting better and better every year and to finally get a conference title is pretty remarkable,” RCC head coach Scott Koenigs said. “We’ve brought in a lot of guys who just like to play the game and we’ll probably have seven or eight players from this team move on to play at four year schools.”

RCC (31-8 overall, 9-3 MCAC South) tied up Dakota County for the title after splitting a doubleheader at Rochester Tuesday. The Blue Devils won the first contest 15-2 in five innings, but fell 13-12 in the nightcap.

RCC had trailed the second game 11-1, but it scored 11 times in the fourth to take a 12-11 lead.

“A lot of teams would’ve rolled over there, but we showed some heart,” Koenigs said.

RCTC tied the game in the fifth on a two-out bloop single and won it in the bottom of the eighth.

“They got a dink and a dunk at the wrong time for us,” Koenigs said. “What really hurt us is we stopped hitting after the fourth.”

RCC was missing some of it’s regulars so Zach Prins was forced to start the second game. He didn’t last long as he walked six in under two innings of work. Brady Banse ended up getting the loss in relief as he pitched on three days rest.

“Zach struggled with a small strike zone today,” Koenigs said. “But six walks in that time is just not acceptable at Riverland. He’s been excellent all year but he struggled today.”

In the first game, Southland grad Brian Voigt got his fourth win of the year while allowing just one hit and striking out five. Voigt finishes the regular season with a 4-0 record and a 0.27 ERA (one run in 26 innings).

RCC, which is ranked No. 10 in the nation, will now look to the MCAC state baseball tournament, in which it is seeded No. 1. The Blue Devils will play No. 8 Ridgewater Friday at Faber Field in St. Cloud. If it wins, RCC would play again at 5 p.m. Friday.

1 2 3 4 5 R H E

RCC 4 2 5 2 2 15 15 1

RCTC 0 0 2 0 0 2 1 3

RCC pitching: Brian Voigt (W, 4-0), 5 IP, 1 H, 4 BB, 0 ER, 1 R, 5 K

RCC hitting: Shawn Pape, 3-for-4, HR, 2 RBIs, 3 R; Chris Lindemann, 3-for-4, HR, double, 3 RBIs, 3 R; Kyle Starkey, 1-for-4, RBI, 2 R; Brandon Huhn, 2-for-3, 2 doubles, 4 RBIs, BB, 2 R; Andy Behnke, 1-for-4, RBI, 2 R; Shane Lange, 1-for-4, 2 RBIs; Voigt, 2-for-3, BB; Derek Emanuel, 2-for-3, 2 RBIs, R; Mitch Kaplan, 0-for-1, 2 R, BB

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E

RCC 1 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 12 10 1

RCTC 1 7 3 0 1 0 0 1 13 13 1

RCC pitching: Zach Prins, 1 2/3 IP, 2 H, 6 BB, 7 ER, 2 K; Nate Steenblock, 2 1/3 IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 K; Brady Banse (L), 3 2/3 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 2 ER, 6 K, HBP

RCC hitting: Pape, 2-for-4, 2 RBIs, 3 R, BB; Winston Smith, 1-for-3, 2 R, BB; Kyle Starkey, 2-for-4, double, 5 RBIs, R; Huhn, 1-for-5, RBI, R; Behnke, 1-for-3, RBI, R; Voigt, 2-for-4, R, BB; Dustin Fritz, 0-for-3, RBI, R; Derek Hahn, 1-for-3, RBI, 2 BBs, 2 R