By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
AUBURNDALE, Fla. — After scoring a combined four runs in the first two innings, it appeared like Friday's nonconference showdown between the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota baseball team and Augustana was going to be a shootout.
 
Not quite.
 
After a Viking two-run first and a Cardinal two-run second, neither team would plate another run over the next five innings.
 
Unfortunately, with two Augustana swings of the bat, that all changed.
 
Augustana got back-to-back home runs from Gunnar Haskins and Jake Huber with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting the Vikings to a 4-2 victory over the Cardinals.
 
"It's a tough loss to swallow, but it was a great collegiate baseball game," said Saint Mary's coach Nick Winecke. "Both teams played well, they just had two big swings (in the eighth inning), and that proved to be the difference."
 
Augustana took advantage of a two-out Cardinal error to score a pair of unearned runs off Saint Mary's starter Eli Morison  () in the bottom of the first inning.
 
Saint Mary's quickly answered in the second, getting back-to-back singles from Zach Slowiak (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) and Connor Cornell (), and, one out later, Dixon Irwin delivered a two-run double to pull the Cardinals even, 2-2.
 
That, however, would be the extent of the Cardinals' offensive fireworks, as Saint Mary's collected just four hits—and managed to get just one player into scoring position—over the final seven innings.
 
Morison and reliever Austin Lenhardt (Winona, Minn.) did their part to keep the game deadlocked, as Morison allowed just two more hits—singles in the second and third innings—in his 4 2/3 innings of work, while Lenhardt held the Vikings hitless over the next 2 1/3 innings.
 
And then came the eighth.
 
Lenhardt induced Mike Avelia to ground out to open the inning, but Haskins and Huber followed with their back-to-back home runs to seal the Augustana victory.
 
Justin Weinberg (Eagan, Minn.) was the only Cardinal with more than one hit, going 2-for-4, while Irwin, Slowiak, Cornell, Joe Seegers (Oconomowoc, Wis.), and Will Matthews () all had one hit.
 
Avelia and Haskins each went 2-for-4 to lead the way for the Vikings, who closed out their eight-game spring trip with a 6-2 record.
 
The Cardinals (3-4 overall) are back in action on Saturday, squaring off against Mount Union in a nonconference doubleheader. First pitch is slated for 2:30 p.m. (EST).