This article was originally published prior to June 2, 2013. Due to a change in the content management systems, the initial publication date in not available. 

A trip Tuesday to Salina allowed the Baker University baseball team to clinch its third victory of the season.

The Wildcats faced Kansas Wesleyan University, splitting games with a 6-5 loss and a 10-4 victory.

In game one, the Coyotes wasted no time, jumping ahead early with a solo home run in the first inning.

This did not rattle junior Chad Griffin, as he answered with a home run in the second inning.

Griffin’s bomb ignited the Baker offense to score three total runs that inning.

Baker tacked on two more in the fifth, also with the help of Griffin.

He smashed another homer, but this time, tallying two runs to put the ‘Cats ahead 5-2.

“I’ve been struggling a little bit to get the ball into the air, and the wind was blowing out, so it gave me the confidence to swing away and let good things happen,” Griffin said.

Despite a solid pitching performance by senior Joe Kaup, the Coyotes strung together three runs in the sixth inning to tie the game.

Both teams couldn’t convert in the seventh, so the game was sent to an eighth inning. Sophomore Josh Reed took the mound to hold the Coyotes scoreless.

Head coach Phil Hannon said Reed’s performance was strong in a pressure situation.

“Josh did a heck of a job, especially coming in with the score tied,” Hannon said.

However, luck ran out for freshman Justin Ginn, who was called to the mound with runners on the bases and two outs.

The No. 3 batter for KWU stepped up to the plate and executed a run for the Coyotes to take the game, 6-5.

“It was a really solid game all around, on both sides,” Hannon said. “Our pitchers worked hard and we had some good defensive plays to get us out of big innings.”

The ‘Cats came back in game two, exploding offensively with 10 hits resulting in 10 runs.

Freshman Chris Cummins had another strong performance from the mound, accompanied by freshman Nathan Wheelock.

Hannon said the team’s ability to pressure the defense and keep a balanced batting order has helped the team.

“I really liked how our offense came to the plate scoring runs every inning,” he said.

Baker will begin conference play this weekend against Evangel University in Springfield, Mo.

Kaup said the team is excited and ready to begin a new portion of the season.

“I think we’re definitely excited. We’re confident,” Kaup said. “Even with the loss in the first game, (against KWU) we came away happy and we are ready.”