Burnsville, MN — After losing so many one-run games early in the year (5 to be exact), it was nice to see the Blaze win a close game 4-3 over Hastings on a sunny Saturday at Alimagnet. A bases loaded walk in the 6th inning to Ethan Voss proved to be the difference in this tight non-conference matchup. This win was a true team win, as it seemed like at some point in this game everybody who stepped on the field for Burnsville did something to contribute to this win. Seniors, juniors and sophomores all stepped up to seemingly will this team to a win, and notch the 6th win of the year for the black and gold. Senior Kade Bowar started on the mound for Burnsville, and was sharp, going 4 innings, allowing 1 unearned run, on 3 hits and 1 walk, striking out 1. An error and a wild pitch in the 3rd inning led to the one run given up. The Blaze defense made some nice plays as well, especially catcher Jackson Kieffer. Kieff threw out 3 baserunners on the day, which erased potential rallies in the 1st, 3rd and 6th innings. Sophomore 3rd baseman Nicholas Meuser also made some key plays early in his second varsity start. Jonah Dawson made an amazing running catch in the 7th inning as well. It took the Blaze offense one time through the order against the left-handed pitcher Conner Stoffel before they were able to get something going. DH Blake Widness started the 4th inning with a solid single to right, followed by an Ethan Voss single up the middle moving pinch runner Alex Thompson over to 3rd. Sophomore Nicholas Meuser then ripped his 2nd hit of the day to score Thompson. Sophomore Sean Emerson then stroked a base hit down the left field line to score Voss. After a Dawson walk to load the bases with two outs, Kieffer was hit by a pitch to score Meuser, and give the Blaze a 3-1 lead. Coach Scholl turned to junior Asher Giese to pitch the 5th inning in his first extended outing on the hill this year. A walk, a double, a wild pitch and a ground out scored 2 runs and tied the game 3-3. Asher settled in and pitched a scoreless 6th inning, setting up the Blaze to take the lead in the bottom of the 6th, and earning his first varsity win. The game winning rally started with Conner Quimby drawing a 4 pitch walk followed by a perfectly executed hit and run by Dawson to move Quimby to 3rd, and Dawson taking 2nd on a throwing error. Kieffer hit a grounder up the middle to the pulled in shortstop who booted it right to the 2nd baseman, who threw Quimby out at the plate. Bowar then walked to reload the bases. Ethan Voss then coaxed a 2-out walk to plate the go-ahead and what turned out to be the winning run. Senior relief specialist Owen Geegan got the call to pitch the 7th. He was able to shut the door, allowing just 1 hit, and striking out 1. Geegan earned his first save, and the team's first save of the year. The offense was led by Ethan Voss who was 3 for 3, with a run, RBI, walk and stolen base. Nicholas Meuser was 2 for 3 with a run and RBI, Emerson was 1 for 3 with an RBI, Dawson was 1 for 2 with a run, 2 walks, and a stolen base. and Widness was 1 for 2. The Blaze (6-11) play their last home game on Monday at 7:00 vs Prior Lake at Alimagnet. Ethan Voss is expected to take the hill for Burnsville.