TUCSON, ARIZ.  (VCSU. com)– The Viking offense erupted for 23 hits and 25 runs Thursday afternoon as the Valley City State baseball team slugged its way to a 25-15 victory over North Central University.

The Vikings batted .451 (23-51) in the high-scoring game and scored in each of the first four innings to build an 10-1 lead they would not relinquish. VCSU posted another eight runs in the sixth inning to go up 18-5 before North Central cut the deficit to 18-12 after the eighth inning. The Vikings put the game away for good with seven more runs in the top of the ninth inning.

VCSU finished with 25 runs on 23 hits and six North Central errors. North Central totaled 15 runs on 16 hits and four Viking errors.

“It was a wild game,” said head coach Casey Olney. “The ball was flying all over the field with some help from the wind. Our hitters maintained focus and did not give away any at bats and a lot of good things happened for them. A lot of guys played and were able to contribute, which is a great thing early in the season.”

Thirteen different Vikings collected hits in the game, including four that had three hits each. Austin Smith went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs. Xavier Merritt was 3-for-5 with three runs and an RBI. Sal Avila homered as he went 3-for-5, scored three runs and drove in three. Jorun Hamre had a big game as well, going 3-for-3 with a run and four RBIs. Kody Lane had a pair of hits and drove in three.

Freshman Marcus Niemann started on the mound for VCSU and was solid. Niemann lasted 4 1/3 innings, allowing four hits and four runs. He walked three and struck out one. Aaron Schuster pitched 2 2/3 innings in relief to pick up the win. Schuster gave up four hits and three earned runs. He walked one and struck out four. Nathan Demarais, normally a position player for the Vikings, ate up the final two innings on the mound with VCSU holding a big lead.

Up next: Valley City State (2-6) plays two games on Friday in Tucson. The Vikings face Dakota Wesleyan at 4 p.m. CST in a 7-inning game, and then play Northwestern College at 7:30 p.m. in a 9-inning game.