ST. LOUIS –The University of Missouri-St. Louis baseball team closed out its home schedule by recording a 7-5 win over McKendree in the opening game of a doubleheader on Saturday to secure the series victory. The Bearcats posted an 11-7 win in the nightcap.
 
The two teams combined for 30 runs on 45 hits in 16 innings of play. Leighton Keller highlighted the offense for the Tritons, finishing the day 6-for-8 at the plate.
 
Records: UMSL (12-23, 10-18 GLVC), McKendree (14-22, 7-21 GLVC)
 
Game 1: UMSL 7, McKendree 5
UMSL scored seven unanswered runs over two innings to help garner the win. Five of those runs came in the second inning – all with two outs – to erase a 3-0 deficit. The Tritons recorded five hits in that frame, including a two-run double from Jared Bryant.
 
Two more runs came home in the third inning to make it a 7-3 advantage.
 
UMSL finished with 12 hits, including three from Keller, who also recorded two RBI, scored a run and drew a walk. Jacob Stoker, Clayton Stephens and Matt DiMemmo all added two hits.
 
Freshman Jack Rhodes earned the win in relief, allowing two runs on four hits in four and one-thirds of an inning. He struck out four and walked three.
 
Game 2: McKendree 11, UMSL 7
The two teams combined for nine runs in the first inning with the Bearcats scoring five of those. UMSL scored on an RBI double from John Hilpert, an RBI single from Stephens and on a two-run homer from DiMemmo.
 
DiMemmo picked up his third RBI of the game in the third inning on a sac fly that knotted the score at 5-5. He finished the game with four.
 
McKendree then scored six unanswered to help secure the win. The Bearcats recorded 11 hits and left 12 on base, while UMSL tallied 13 hits and left 12 stranded.  The Tritons scored twice in the ninth and left the bases loaded to end the game.
 
Keller added another three hits, while Stoker, Stephens, DiMemmo and Bryce Kulinski all had two hits each.
 
Up Next: UMSL concludes the season next weekend with a four-game series at Lindenwood.