Junior pitcher Tyler Cassmeyer threw 8 1/3 innings of shutout ball in Lindenwood’s division title clinching win over UMSL on Friday. (Photo courtesy of Lindenwood Athletics)
by Cedric Williams
Senior Editor
The Lindenwood University baseball team put the finishing touches on winning the Great Lakes Valley Conference Blue Division championship this past weekend, by winning all four games it played against the crosstown rival University of Missouri-St. Louis Tritons at the Lou Brock Sports Complex in St. Charles.
Lindenwood came into the final weekend of the 2021 regular season needing to win just one of its final four games to clinch the division title. But to make sure they left no doubt about who the best team in the GLVC Blue Division was this season, the Lions won all four games against visiting UMSL to close the regular season out in style.
In the four games, Lindenwood outscored UMSL 28-4 and outhit the Tritons 38-19. In fact, the Lions had the lead by the third inning in every game and only once in the series was the scored tied as late as the fifth inning. That was the third game of the series, which Lindenwood won 3-2, and the Lions grabbed that final lead in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Each game seem to have a different star for the Lions.
In the opener on Friday, starting pitcher Tyler Cassmeyer (7-0) gave one of his best performances of the season when he went 8 1/3 innings and allowed zero runs, only four hits, and struck out seven.
At the plate, leadoff man Will Lanxon had two hits and scored a run, and Lindenwood stole four bases, including a steal of home by second baseman Beau Collier.
In Game 2, Blake Beckmann (6-1) picked up a seven-inning, complete-game victory in a 7-1 Lions win. The senior from Germantown, Ill., allowed just the one run on four hits and no walks, while striking out a season-high 12 UMSL batters.
At the plate, Lindenwood pounded out 11 hits, led by first baseman Mitchell Krebs and catcher Logan Rezash, who each had two hits and two RBIs in the win.
Before the third game of the series, which was the first game of the day on Saturday, Lindenwood honored its 10 seniors with a tribute that included lots of hugs, tears and tons of pictures.
Afterwards, the Lions proceeded to pound on the Tritons some more with a 3-2 win in the first game of the day and a 15-1 win in the nightcap.
The opener featured more solid pitching, as starter Niko Marshall (4-1) allowed just two runs in five innings of work, before giving way to reliever Justin Taylor, who threw two shutout innings to pick up his fourth save of the season.
Then in the finale, the Lions really let loose, banging out 14 hits, including three by Collier and two each by Lanxon, Bryce Beckmann, Jayce Maag, and Johnny Hermann. Lanxon and shortstop Kolby Schulte had four RBIs apiece in a game in which Lindenwood scored at least one run against all five pitchers UMSL used.
The four-game sweep allowed Lindenwood to lift its overall season record to 29-7, which is good enough to have the Lions ranked No. 13 in the country in the most recent National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America national poll.
Lindenwood will have a chance to move up those rankings and possibly clinch a spot in the NCAA Division II National Tournament this week when it hosts the GLVC Championship Tournament at the Lou Brock Sports Complex.
That event will take place Thursday, May 13 through Sunday, May 16, with the winner earning the GLVC’s automatic bid into the NCAA regionals.