DAVENPORT, Fla. – Yesterday, the Yellowjacket baseball built a big lead, lost it, and ultimately fell in an 11-inning marathon to Greenville. It was the first time in the 2023 season that the Yellowjackets dropped back-to-back games.
 
Friday, the 'Jackets looked to snap that streak, and keep their record above the .500 mark, taking on Simpson College in an afternoon doubleheader.
 
And when all was said and done, the Yellowjackets will need to wait another day to snap the streak, and need a win to get their record back to .500. A strong opponent, Simpson took both ends of Friday's doubleheader, defeating the Yellowjackets 5-4 in game one, and completing the sweep with a 3-2 win in the second game.
 
The Yellowjackets will now enter the final game of their Florida swing with a record of 4-5.
 
Game One
 
In the opener Friday the Yellowjackets jumped on Simpson early, scoring twice in the top of the first inning. Isaac Fugere (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East) got things started when he singled to left field, scoring Nick Fredrikson (Minneapolis, Minn./St. Anthony Village) with the game's first run. Christian Garcia (Blue Springs, Mo./Blue Springs), who had a brilliant day at the plate Thursday, followed with a double to left, scoring Ben Rhodes (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) to make it 2-0.
 
Simpson plated its first run in the bottom of the second, but then gave it right back, allowing Rhodes to score his second run of the game on an error in the top of the third. The Yellowjackets extended the lead to 4-1 in the fifth when Garcia doubled with two outs, bringing home Noah Dagostino (Andover, Minn./Andover).
 
Things changed in the bottom of the sixth, however, as Simpson came roaring back. After a sacrifice fly cut the Yellowjacket lead in half, Will Carlock drove a ball over the fence in right field for a three-run home run, and just like that Simpson was in front 5-4.
 
In the seventh, Garcia continued his hot hitting with a two-out single, but that was it, and the Yellowjackets dropped their third straight.
 
It was a disappointing finish for Yellowjacket ace Ryan Rodgriguez. The senior lefthander went the distance, allowing five runs on seven hits to go along with four strikeouts. Prior to the sixth, he'd only allowed Simpson to have three base runners. His record drops to 1-1 on the year.
 
Garcia provided the Yellowjackets with three of their six hits and drove in a pair of runs to pace the offense.
 
Game Two
Junior Ben Welle (Melrose, Minn./Melrose Area), who has had a strong start to the 2023 season, took the ball in the second game for the Yellowjackets and went the distance, allowing three runs (two earned) while scattering four hits. He walked one and struck out three.
 
One of those hits came in the first inning, when Brady Held hit a one-out, two-run home run to give Simpson a 2-0 lead.

It stayed that way until the Yellowjackets came back to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth.
 
Dagostino led off the inning with a single, then stole second and then came around to score when a pickoff went awry, getting the Yellowjackets to within 2-1. Later in the inning, after the Yellowjackets did good work on the basepaths, Trey Sybrant (St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville Senior) scored on a wild pitch, tying the game.
 
Unfortunately for the Yellowjackets, two of the four hits for Simpson came in the top of the seventh, as back-to-back singles with two outs plated the eventual game-winning run, making it 3-2.
 
Dagostino had two of the Yellowjackets' five hits in the game, leading the offensive attack.
 
The Yellowjackets will close out their trip to Florida Saturday, taking on UW-Eau Claire in a single nine-inning game. The first pitch is scheduled for 8 a.m. CT at Lake Myrtle Sports Park in Auburndale.