The DCTC Blue Knights walked away from MCCC Crossover this past weekend with three more wins on the season, splitting a doubleheader versus Itasca and winning two over Hibbing.
In the doubleheader against Itasca on Saturday, the Blue Knights’ Jared Powell led off the bottom half of the seventh inning with a double. Alex Hanson-Michelson drove in Powell with a base hit to tie the game at six. Kyle Sovde then drilled a line drive, walk-off double into the left center field gap, scoring Hanson-Michelson all the way from first to give the Knights the 7-6 win.
In game two, the Blue Knights trailed 2-3 heading into the seventh inning but were able to put two runs on the board to take a 4-3 lead. Itasca would answer the two runs, however, winning 5-4 over DCTC. Sovde, Hanson-Michelson, Scott Werner and Jason Gergen each had multiple hits on the day.
Sunday, DCTC played a doubleheader versus Hibbing. After a shaky start from the Blue Knights pitching staff, Hanson-Michelson was able to come in on relief and shut the door on the 7-5 win. He struck out six batters and allowed no walks and no runs on only three hits. Hanson-Michelson, Ryan Van Dusen and Derek Albers each had two hits in the game.
In the second game, the bats woke up and the Knights banged out 19 hits to Hibbing’s five, taking a 16-6 victory. Van Dusen, Werner, Hanson-Michelson, Brian Hanson and Charles Stene each collected two hits in the game. Tom Barilla added a 4-4 performance of his own and Michael Dudero and Hanson each drove in three runs. Hanson-Michelson knocked in two runs and added his second home run of the season.
Starter Alex Smith pitched an excellent game, picking up the win with four strong innings, allowing only one hit and striking out four Hibbing hitters along the way.
For the season, the DCTC team is hitting an impressive .355. Tom Barilla leads lead the team with a .533 average, followed by Kyle Sovde at .517 and Derek Albers hitting .421.
The Blue Knights currently stand at 13-9 on the season with a big match-up against division powerhouse Ridgewater on Wednesday. Wednesday’s game is the home opener for the Blue Knights, with game times at 2 and 4 p.m. at Alimagnet Park in Burnsville.