The Culver-Stockton baseball team came from behind in both ends of Saturday doubleheader with Missouri Valley College to earn a sweep of the Heart of America Athletic Conference twinbill and win the the series three games to one.

In the opener, the Wildcats did what they did in game one and tallied three runs each in the fifth and sixth innings to overcome a 5-0 deficit to post a 6-5 victory. In game two, C-SC trailed 2-0 after one inning but the hosts plated single runs in the second, third and fourth innings, and then added two more fifth to pick up a 5-1 decision.

The sweep vaulted the Wildcats into a seventh place tie with Peru State in the Heart standings with a 12-16 league mark, putting them two games in front of Clarke, who is ninth. The top eight teams qualify for the conference tournament. Only four games remain on the conference slate and they will played next Friday and Saturday.

After being held hitless for four innings in a 2-0 loss in game two Friday by Valley's Tanner Duncan, the Wildcats were held hitless and scoreless for the first four innings by Viking hurler Mason Chamberlain in the opener Saturday.

However, C-SC finally solved Chamberlain in the fifth and it started with a leadoff single by Jeremiah Morris. Jackson Day followed with a second single before Ryan Osso popped out for the first out of the inning.

Number nine hitter Wyatt Wright then drilled a double to left-center field to score Morris and sending Day to third to give the Wildcats their first run since the sixth inning of game one Friday, a span off 11 1/3 innings.

That double chased Chamberlain from the game in favor of receiver Tyler Brakensie. Noble Oxford greeted Brakensie with a sacrifice to center to score Day and move Wright to third base.

Kannon Kirk was intentionally walked by the Vikings to face Tristan Meny. The strategy would have worked, but a wild pitch by Brakensie allowed Wright to score. Meny popped out to end the inning with C-SC trailing 5-3.

After C-SC reliever Garrett Hogarth set the Vikings in order in the top of the sixth inning, the Wildcats kept the momentum from the offensive uprising in the fifth going into the sixth inning.

Jordan Scott walked to open the inning, but Bryan Barreto popped out and Morris lined out to cool any enthusiasm.

The Vikings thought they were out of the inning when Day grounded into a force out to third. However, a balk was called on the Valley pitcher allowing Scott to go to second and wiping out the Day fielder's choice.

Given a second chance, Day delivered a RBI single to score Scott to bring C-SC to within 5-4. The next batter, Osso, was hit by a pitch, and Wright followed with a RBI single, scoring pinch runner Kevin Mueller to tie the game.

Osso and Wright moved up to second and third on a wild pitch before Valley pitched around Oxford to load the bases for Kirk.

In a nine-pitch at-bat, Kirk worked a walk to force Osso home with the go-ahead run and 6-5 Wildcat advantage.

In the seventh, Hogard walked the first two Valley batters he faced in the inning, which ended Howard's outing in favor of closer Isaiah Naylor.

The Vikings ran into the first out on Naylor's  first pitch when they tried a double steal. The lead runner was caught in a run down and tagged out; however, the tying run was still in scoring position at second base.

Naylor got the second out on a fly ball to right field with the tying run holding at second, bit then Naylor hit the next batter to put runners at first and second. 

Naylor didn't blink, however, and the junior closer struck out the next batter to end the game and claim his team-leading fourth save of the season.

Howard earned the victory with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless pitching, allowing no runs and not hits during his 25-pitch outing. 

In game two, the Vikings scored in the first inning for the fourth straight game, plating two runs to take a 2-0 lead.

C-SC cut the lead in half n the second inning when Morris doubled to center and Osso tripled down the right field line.

Some sloppy fielding by the Vikings allowed the Wildcats to tie the game in the third inning. Kirk reached on an error to start the frame before Meny laced one of his three singles to right. Scott then hit a what looked like a double play ball to third, however, after getting the out at second, the second baseman through wild to first, allowing Scott to go to second and Kirk to score the tying run.

Wright gave the Wildcats the lead for good in the fourth inning when he tripled with one out and scored on a wild pitch to make the score 3-2.

C-SC added two more runs in the fifth inning when Morris and Day singled with one out and Oxford doubled down the left field line to make the score 5-2.

C-SC starter Josh Martini took it from there and shut the Vikings down on just five hits overall. Martini, who allowed three hits in the opening inning, didn't allow another hit until giveng up two more hits in the seventh inning. He earned his third win in four decisions by despite walking four and striking out two. He did force the Vikings to hit into two double plays.

C-SC will try to clinch a playoff berth next weekend, Friday and Saturday, April 25-26, when they play a four-game series at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kan. Game time each day is slated for 12 p.m.