With partly cloudy skies and a slight breeze - picking up toward late afternoon - the University of Minnesota Duluth baseball team split its only double header day of Russmatt Central Florida Invite play.

In their first game, the Bulldogs (4-3) out-hit and outplayed the University of Findlay Oilers (3-3) 9-5, and in their second fell just short in a comeback attempt 7-6 to the Tiffin University Dragons.
 
UMD vs. Findlay
 
Coming off of back-to-back losses after starting the season 3-0, UMD's first opponent of the day came against a high-scoring UF team. The Oilers scored 36 runs in their first four games, 32 in their three wins.
 
Senior catcher Tyler Midas got things going in the first inning with an RBI double. FU answered right back in the bottom of the first with three-straight hits to start. Down 2-1, Midas scored the tying run in the top of the third. A two run fifth put the Bulldogs back on top 4-2. But, just as they did in the first, the Oilers took the lead after a three-run bottom of the fifth.

 UMD would add one in the sixth and one in the seventh to go up 6-5 before a three-run ninth put FU in dust on four-straight hits. Sophomore shortstop Chase Thomas, center fielder Drew Stewart and Midas each collected three hits. Stewart now has a hit in all six games he's played in this season with two multi-hit games. Junior Jeremy Thorson and sophomore Evan Vick accounted for three scoreless innings of work while allowing three hits, and one strikeout (from Vick).

 UMD vs. Tiffin

Tiffin University (4-2) road into today on a three-game losing streak. All three games one-run losses. Today, the Dragons used a six-person rotation on the mound to take down the Bulldogs.
 
Junior second baseman Eric Yachinich cracked three hits at the plate (3-4) with three RBI and a walk. Yachinich now has three multi-hit games this season (in five games). Midas cranked a homerun over the right field fence in the eighth inning, his second of the season.
 
In the bottom of the ninth down 7-3, UMD mounted an attempted comeback beginning with a leadoff single by Thomas. A flyout and a groundout proceeded what seemed like a promising start to the ninth. But a single and a walk loaded the bases for Yachinich. The second baseman shot one up the middle for a two-run single to put the score at 7-6. With two on and two outs, the Dragons made their fifth pitching change of the game as Jon Laird forced junior first baseman Tyler Wojciechowski to groundout to second base.
 
UMD will wrap up its Russmatt Invite play against Malone University (6-4 overall) on tomorrow at 8:15 a.m. (CST). The Pioneers have won six straight and all of their Invite play games which included two wins against the No. 17 Minnesota State University-Mankato Mavericks.