INDIANAPOLIS - Coming off a sweep of Goshen College on the road, the Marian University baseball team stepped out of conference against the University of St. Francis (Ill.) on Sunday. The Knights split the non-conference doubleheader after they fell in game one, 7-3, but earned an 11-10 come-from-behind win in game two at Marian University Baseball field to move to 17-15 on the season.

The Fighting Saints jumped out quickly on the Knights as they posted three runs in the top of the first inning and added two more in the top of the second to jump out to a 5-0 lead after two innings.

The Knights scored a single run in the bottom of the third as junior Cory Emmons ripped an RBI-single to the right center field gap to cut the gap to 5-1.

USF added two more in the top of the fifth to open a 7-1 lead and it looked as if it would be too much for MU. However, the Knights did battle back as they cut into the Saints' advantage.

They added a run in the bottom of the sixth as junior Todd Ungru hit his team-leading eighth homerun of the season down the right field line to cut it to 7-2. They added one more in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI-double by junior Bobby Willis to cut the margin to 7-3, but it was not enough as USF was able to hang on for the 7-3 win.

Willis led the Knights after he finished 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. He extended his team-high hitting streak to 11 games. Ungru and Emmons each had a hit and an RBI, while junior Jake Mullis, freshman Dustin Hileman and sophomore Jared Mills each added a hit for the Knights.

The second game became an offensive struggle as both teams hit the ball hard throughout the game. The Knights opened the game with a run on a successful double steal in the bottom of the first as Willis stole home to give MU a 1-0 lead. They added two more in the bottom of the second as sophomore James Storms hit a two run-single down the left field line to open a 3-0 lead after two innings.

USF tied the score with three in the top of the third, but the Knights answered with two of their own in the bottom half of the third. Freshman Chad Schumann hit an RBI-double, while sophomore Evan Schludecker hit an RBI-single to give the Knights a 5-3 lead after three innings.

USF posted four runs in the top of the fourth and two more in the top of the fifth to take a 9-5 lead after four-and-a-half innings of play. The Knights responded with four of their own in the bottom of the fifth to tie score at 9-9 after five innings. Willis drew a bases-loaded walk to open the scoring and Storms hit an RBI-sacrifice fly to score the inning's second run. Freshman Jordan Long drew another bases-loaded walk before Schumann drew the final bases-loaded walk to tie the score.

USF took the lead back with a run in the top of the sixth, but the Knights tied it and took the lead in the bottom of the sixth. Storms knocked home the tying run with another RBI-sacrifice fly, while Mills hit the game-winning RBI-single up the middle to give the Knights the 11-10 lead.

Sophomore Caleb Small finished off the Saints in the top of the seventh to improve to 2-1 on the season and give the Knights the split. He threw three innings of relief, scattered four hits and struck out two to earn the victory.

Storms and Schludecker led the way with two hits each, while Storms drove in a team-high four runs. Freshman Brett Metcalf, Mills, Ungru and Mullis each added a hit for the Knights. Willis' team-leading 11-game hitting streak came to an end after he went 0-for-2 with an RBI and three runs scored.

The Knights head to Spring Arbor University on Tuesday as they get back into conference play. The Knights and Cougars will do battle at 1 p.m.