<y Melson ’09 is beginning to show Knight fans everywhere that Matt Frank is not the only world-class Carleton athlete with a beard. Melson has hit safely in 9 of his past 10 games, and since April 8 is batting .571 with 6 doubles, 3 homeruns, and 10 RBI. Add to this his 9 walks (with only one strikeout), and he is a stunning pair of sideburns away from actually being Joe Mauer. The rest of the Knights also played well this past week, picking up their first MIAC win while going a hard-fought 2-4.
Last Thursday, Carleton split a double-header against Augsburg, winning the much more important second game to pick up their first conference victory. In that game, the Knights came back from a 4-0 deficit and ended the Auggie’s 8-game winning streak thanks to some timely hitting and 4.0 scoreless innings of relief from sophomore Sam Cross-Knorr. Junior Cameron McDonald-Hyman, freshman Grant Bowen, and sophomore Dan Matthews all had eighth-inning RBIs to complete the heroic, extra-inning comeback.
Another bright spot for the Knights was the return of pitching staff stud Ethan Guevin. The junior, who had been out injured since March 23, struck out 2 over 3.0 innings and didn’t give up an earned run.
The Knights continued their winning ways on Monday with a 7-5 win in the first half of a doubleheader with St. Mary’s University. Ethan Guevin ’09 (3-1) lit up the box score and the St. Mary’s lineup, striking out 11 hopeless Cardinals in 6.0 innings of work. Freshmen Zach Miller and Jacob Anderson provided a leadoff homer and 3-run triple respectively in the seventh that sparked a 5-run inning, giving Carleton their second late-inning, come-from-behind victory in as many games. Junior Shane Henfling, who you may recognize as the blonde one with the laser-rocket arm from Carleton’s lovable football team, pitched a stellar seventh to pick up his first save of the season.
Game 2 of the series didn’t go as well. The same can be said about Wednesday’s series with Gustavus, the top-team in the MIAC despite their unfortunate “Golden Gusties” nickname (although John Denver’s first wife did go there). The Knights were outplayed in both games, but the important part is that Jay Melson went 4-for-6 on the day with 2 doubles and a homerun. Be sure to check out Melson and the rest of the Knights this Saturday as they play host to Bethel at 1:00 pm. Bethel is currently ranked in the top ten of the MIAC both academically and on the diamond.