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Jim Grosser

Baseball KatieJo Kuhens

Baseball Splits with Concordia Chicago, Van Fleet Hits Walkoff in Finale

WAVERLY, Iowa-- The Wartburg baseball team (7-7 overall) split its doubleheader with Concordia Chicago (6-7) Sunday. The Cougars claimed the first game 10-6 but the Knights were victorious in the finale as senior Samuel Van Fleet (St. Paul) had the pinch hit, walk-off single to right field for the 7-6 win.

In that game, Concordia jumped to the early lead with a two-run first inning. The Orange and Black evened the score in the second as junior David Fitzgerald (Dubuque) scored on a passed ball and classmate Eric Willis (Waverly) drove in Cody Hyler (Des Moines) on his double to left.

Senior Mike Brown (Bettendorf) had the go-ahead run in the fourth on his leadoff homerun. Classmate Jacob Thumann (DeWitt) had a two-run shot in the fifth to make it 5-2.

The Cougars compiled a four-run sixth inning to take the 6-5 lead, but Wartburg tied it again at six all as junior Blake Mahoney (Des Moines) drove in Willis on his single to centerfield.

Both teams were retired in order in the seventh and eighth innings and after Concordia drew a leadoff walk in the top of the ninth, the next three batters hit into flyouts, to give the Knights another at-bat.

Junior Clay Henning (Plymouth, Wis.) reached on an error, moved to second in Mahoney's bunt and then scored the game-winning run on Van Fleet's pinch hit walk off single.

Hyler went 3-4 in this game and junior Austin Bohling (Letts) earned the win on the mound.

In the first game, the Cougars jumped to an early 4-0 lead after their first at-bats. The Orange and Black scored one in the frame on a sac fly from Willis. Concordia plated one in the third and Wartburg plated two with an RBI double from Willis and ground out from Brown to make the score 5-3.

The Cougars scored on a two-run homer in the fifth and groundout and another two-run homer in the sixth to take the 10-3 lead.

The Knights tallied their final three runs in the seventh as Brown slugged a two-run triple down the right field line who then scored on Van Fleet's sac fly.

The Orange and Black will face this same team next Saturday in St. Louis.
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