PELLA, Iowa – The Wartburg College Knights baseball team (6-13 overall, 3-3 A-R-C) dropped both games of their doubleheader against the Central College Dutch (13-4, 3-3) on Sunday afternoon by losing 7-1 in game one and 8-3 in game two.
 
In game one, Central got on board first with a one-run first inning off of a sac fly to take the early lead. Wartburg responded by tying it up at 1-1 when junior Tyler Hovick (Roland) hit a sac fly to right, scoring classmate Manny Jeffery (Marion).
 
The tie lasted through the fifth inning before Central tacked on three runs at the bottom of the sixth behind a two-RBI single. Two innings later, the Dutch would score their final three runs of the game off of a three-run home run to push the lead to 7-1. Central's pitcher retired two and got freshman Jarod Harris (Manchester) to ground out to short to close out game one of the doubleheader.
 
Game two saw the Knights strike first behind a RBI single by junior Collin Guinn (Davenport) to score Hovick and take the early 1-0 lead. A two-run fourth inning would put the Dutch back in front, 3-1. The Orange and Black trimmed the lead to one (3-2) after junior outfielder Tyler Nunemaker (Ely) hit into a double play that scored freshman Ryan Willis (Waverly).
 
Central tacked on their fourth run of the day in the fifth before scoring four runs in the sixth, highlighted by Central's Patrick Diemer connecting on a three-RBI double to push the lead to 8-2. Harris scored the final Wartburg run of the day by singling to left, scoring Guinn at the top of the seventh before failing to muster a comeback and falling to the Dutch 8-3.  
 
Wartburg will return to action on Tuesday, April 2 when they travel to face the Luther College Norse in doubleheader action beginning at 1 p.m.