Baseball 3/23/2013 4:24:00 PM John Potter, Media Relations Assistant

Storm sweeps ART U behind Christiansen gem, comeback effort

DSU extends win streak to five games

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SAINT GEORGE – The Dixie State baseball team (16-6-1, 9-5-1 PWC) got the best pitching performance of the year from senior Austin Christiansen (Las Vegas, NV/Legacy (NV)) with a two-hit shutout and a comeback performance in the afternoon game to earn a Pacific West Conference series sweep over Academy of Art with 6-0 and 4-2 wins Saturday at Bruce Hurst Field.

Christiansen picked up his third win of the year to remain undefeated, going the distance and not allowing a hit over the final eight innings. He struck out a season-high eight batters en route to the shutout in Saturday's first game.

In the bottom of the first, Dixie State took the early lead when senior Colton Yack (South Jordan, UT/Bingham) singled to left field, scoring Garrett Nash (Draper, UT/Jordan) after a leadoff double. Yack made it 4-0 in the third inning with a two-run double and scoring on a two-base throwing error from right field.

That would be more than enough run support for Christiansen, as recorded separate strings of retired batters. He stopped eight between the first and fourth innings and added 16 in a row between walks in the fourth and ninth frames.

Nash added an RBI single on a suicide squeeze in the fourth inning and Yuto Kata (Chiba, Japan/Juan Diego (Utah)) laced an RBI single up the middle in the sixth inning.

Nash and Yack each led the Red Storm offense with two hits.

Wade Broadstreet took the loss for the Urban Knights (2-21, 1-13 PWC) allowing all six DSU runs despite striking out five.

The Red Storm had to comeback in the series finale after ART U took their first lead on a Dante Redhead two-run double in the second inning off starter Kody Christoffersen (Ogden, UT/Weber).

After the Storm went scoreless for three innings off freshman hurler Nicholas Boyett, three straight hits put Dixie State on the board in the fourth inning. Jordan Hanley (Las Vegas. NV/Bonanza) led off with a single to center and advance to third on a gap hit by Mitch Manning (Kaysville, UT/Davis). Kevin Kline (Las Vegas, NV/Rancho) cut the ART U lead to 2-1, doubling to right center. Two batters later, Ryan Westcott hit a sharp line drive comebacker to Boyett for an out. But in an attempt to double off Manning from third, Boyett misfired a throw to third that ended up going out of play – allowing Manning from third and Kline from second to score for a 3-2 DSU advantage.

Bryce Anderson (Cedar City, UT/Cedar HS) made his first relief appearance of the season and quelled an Urban Knight threat in the fifth after inducing a ground ball out with the tying run at second base.

DSU tacked on a run in the bottom of the fifth. Hanley hit a line drive to right field with Kata at third. Stefan Henderson made the grab and fired the ball in time to beat a tagging Kata, but ART U catcher James Singzon dropped the ball on the attempted tag.

Anderson retired all seven batters he faced to earn the save and preserve Christoffersen's win. The starter moved to 2-0 allowing two runs on six hits over 4.2 innings.

DSU outhit the Knights seven to six in the series finale – Yack and Manning notched two hits.

Dixie State will resume a postponed game against Hawai'i Hilo on a neutral field on Wednesday. The game will be played at California Baptist beginning at 2 p.m. Pacific (3 p.m. Mountain) with Dixie State leading 3-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning. After that game is completed, the teams will play a seven-inning game to complete the series affected by rain and unplayable conditions at Wong Stadium on March 11.

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