St. Paul, Minn. – Macalester baseball hosted its last conference doubleheader today against Hamline University. The Scots took game one, 9-1, but the Pipers won game two, 16-5. The Scots move to 12-21 (8-12 MIAC) and the Pipers are now 12-23 (5-13 MIAC).
 
After two scoreless innings, the Pipers would score a run in the top of the third. Macalester would answer in the bottom of the frame with a run of their own. After back-to-back singles, sophomore Matt Odom (Glendale, Calif./St. Francis) would hit a single and senior Lian Lincoln (Anchorage, Alaska/South Anchorage) would come home after a Pipers error to tie the game at 1-1. Macalester bats came alive in the fourth. After two hits at the beginning of the fourth, senior Michael Helton (Laguna Beach, Calif./Sage Hill) was able to reach home on a throw and put the Scots up 2-1. Junior Kenny Rodriguez (Bronx, N.Y./George School) scored on a fielder's choice. Senior Anushka Fernando (Silver Spring, MD./Wheaton) added a run off an RBI single by Lincoln, making the score 4-1. Then Odom would smash a three-run homer to increase the Scots' lead to 7-1. Macalester put up two more runs in the sixth by senior Leonardo Bucello (Bethesda, MD./Walter Johnson) and Moreno to win 9-1.
 
Junior Peter Aspholm (Winthrop, Wash./Liberty Bell) pitched six innings, striking out eight batters and only allowing the one run. Fellow junior Joey Clark (Brubank, Calif./Burbank) pitched in the last innings and struck out two batters.
 
In game two, Hamline went ahead 2-0 in the first but Macalester again answered in the bottom of the inning. After his leadoff double, Helton came home off a double from Moreno. A Piper wild pitch would send Moreno home and tie the game at 2-2. The Pipers retook the lead 3-2 in the second. In the fourth, junior Erik Hager (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville South) scored the tying run, with Moreno's RBI single. Sophomore Matt Mukai (Foster City, Calif./Aragon) blasted a solo home run in the fifth to take the lead 4-3. However, Hamline came back with six runs at the top of the sixth to go up 9-4. Helton would hit an RBI double at the bottom of the frame to send home first year Evan Burns (Evanston, Ill./Evanston Township) to make it 9-5, but the Pipers continued to score seven more runs over the next three innings to beat the Scots 16-5.
 
Helton went 2-for-4 with one run and an RBI, while Moreno went 2-for-5 with one run and two RBI's.
 
The Scots are scheduled to play St. Olaf on Tuesday May 10, in a non-conference doubleheader at Nicholson Field. Game one is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. and game two is at 5:00 p.m.