Controversial Ending to 21-Inning College Baseball Marathon

A college baseball game stretched over 21 innings and more than 24 hours concluded in a contentious manner.

The University of St. Thomas faced off against Northern Colorado in St. Paul, Minnesota, in a rescheduled game that started on Friday. The Tommies lost 8-7 with a walk-off balk called against pitcher Nolan Kemp, who was unable to finish the 11th inning due to darkness.

With two outs and the bases loaded, Northern Colorado’s designated hitter, Brien Kenny, signaled for a balk on a 2-2 count, allowing the winning run to score in the bottom of the 21st inning.

Everyone from Kemp to his teammates were bewildered by the call. The umpires, however, didn’t entertain St. Thomas’ objections. According to the Midco Sports Plus broadcast, the first base umpire indicated that Kemp had shifted his front shoulder.

This game marked the longest in Summit League’s history and sits as the eighth-longest in NCAA Division I by innings.

It’s worth noting, though, that these weren’t exactly standout teams. After the game, Northern Colorado improved to an 8-29 record, while St. Thomas fell to 6-24.

Interestingly, despite the lengthy match, neither team utilized a particularly high number of pitchers. St. Thomas’s starting pitcher, Brayden Olson, went 6 1/3 innings, giving up five runs (three earned). Zak Endres followed with 3 2/3 innings. Sam Stockman took the mound for 8 2/3 innings, allowing two runs. Although Kemp pitched three hitless innings, he did walk three batters before the pivotal balk.

Northern Colorado’s bullpen also contributed with 8 2/3 innings, where Trevor Landen took center stage after Reece Wagner (6 innings), Gus Allred (1 2/3 innings), and Brady Hudson (2 1/3 innings) pitched into extra innings.

This marathon contest was intended to kick off a four-game series over three days. In the next game on Saturday, St. Thomas was leading 11-3 before it was halted in the eighth inning, with plans to continue the following Sunday morning. The subsequent game is set to follow right after.