ST. MARIES, Idaho — The Central Washington Spuds split a doubleheader against St. Maries on the road in St. Maries, Idaho.

St. Maries took a close battle in the opening game of the day, taking down the Spuds 9-8. Central Washington led early in the matchup thanks to three runs in the top of the first. Trading runs for much of the rest of the way, St. Maries used a five-run surge in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull ahead, 9-6.

A pair of runs in the top of the seventh helped trim the lead, but the late comeback attempt ultimately came up short for the Spuds. Austin Kern finished a perfect 4-4 from the plate for the Spuds, with three runs earned. Taylor Davidson finished with multiple hits as well for the Spuds, going 3-4 in the game.

The Spuds got their revenge in the second game of the day, taking down St. Maries 7-6 in another closely fought matchup. Down 6-1 coming out of the third inning, the Spuds poured in two runs in the fourth, and four in the fifth, to pull away for good.

Royce Valdez led the Spuds from the plate, finishing 3-4 with three RBIs and a pair of runs earned. Clayton Kellogg and Zach Elizalde notched a pair of hits as well for Central Washington.

Moving on from the mid-week series, the Spuds will face St. Maries again on Saturday for another doubleheader matchup.