SE Storms Past SNU in Series Opener

DURANT, Okla.  – Southeastern exploded for 17 hits and scored the last nine runs of the contest to pick up a seven-inning, 13-3 run-rule victory over Southern Nazarene on Friday afternoon at the Ballpark in Durant.
 
The win lifts SE's Great American Conference record to 7-7 on the year and its overall mark to 11-14 with the final two games of the series set for Saturday afternoon beginning at 1 p.m.
 
The Savage Storm had five players collect multi-hit outings, led by the 4-for-5 effort of Corban Taylor.
 
Jacob Soisson, Brandon Grimsley and Connor Counce each added 3-for-4 performances, while Kaleb Thomas added a 2-for-4 effort.
 
Dylan Helms and Collin Sefcik each had one hit.
 
Sefcik and Grimsley each drove in three runs, while Helms and Taylor added a pair of RBI.  Thomas and Conner Koepp drove in one apiece.
 
Helms, Sefcik and Grimsley each connected on home runs.
 
Dylan Linke turned in a complete game on the hill after tossing 7.0 innings and allowing three runs, just one of which was earned, on six hits with three strikeouts to move to 2-0 on the season.
 
Taylor put the Storm on the board in the bottom of the first inning with an RBI single that plated Thomas.
 
However, SNU answered, first with a solo home in the second and then taking a 2-1 lead with an RBI single in the third.
 
SE bounced back quickly though with Sefcik putting the Storm back I front for good with a three run homer that scored Soisson and Taylor to take a 4-2 lead.
 
The Crimson Storm would get another run in the fourth, taking advantage of one of SE's two errors, to close the Storm edge to 4-3.
 
That was as close as the game would get though as Thomas would drive in Counce by reaching on an error to open scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning.
 
Helms followed with a two-run homer to open the lead up to 7-3.
 
Corban Taylor would then double and move to third on an error, and two batters later he would score when Soisson reached on another SNU error.
 
Sefcik would draw a walk and Grimsley would end the scoring in the inning with a three-run homer that opened up an 11-3 lead after four innings.
 
Neither team scored for two innings until the bottom of the seventh as the Storm was looking to finish off a run-rule win with Grimsley scoring on a Koepp RBI groundout to make the score 12-3.
 
Thomas and a pinch-hitting Brayon Colley both drew intentional walks to load the bases with one out before Taylor finished the game with an RBI single to left for the 13-3 run-rule win.