WAVERLY, Iowa – Baseball split an American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) doubleheader against No. 27/RV Buena Vista University with a 14-4 win in seven innings followed by an 8-4 loss on Tuesday, Apr. 22. The Knights are now 17-15 overall and 11-10 in A-R-C play, while BVU is now 25-8 overall and 14-4 in A-R-C play.
Game Summary
- Game One
- First Inning
- Second Inning
- The Beavers tied the game up the following frame after a leadoff triple set up two runs being scored in the second inning for BVU
- Fifth Inning
- Both Charlie Krueger and Jayen Scott singled to begin the bottom of the fifth inning to set up a two-RBI single right up the middle from Jurgensen to push the Wartburg lead to 4-2
- Following walks from Stubitz and Keegan Schmitt, Troha singled to bring two more runs across followed by one more run on an error to make the score 7-2
- Troha was able to steal home on a double steal from the Knights that gave them an 8-2 lead after five innings
- Sixth Inning
- Jurgensen homered in the sixth inning to score Scott and himself to push the lead to 10-2
- Schmitt doubled three batters later to score Walton and then Andrew Robinson singled to score Schmitt to make the score 12-2 headed to the seventh inning
- Seventh Inning
- BVU did not do down quietly as the brought two runs across in the top half of the seventh to make the score 12-4
- The Beavers put three Knights on base to begin the bottom half and Stubtiz was able to bring one run across with a single
- Jurgensen ended the game by scoring from third on a wild pitch to cap off a 14-4 win in seven innings
- Game Two
- First Inning
- Buena Vista jumped on the Knights early with a triple that eventually led to a score giving the Beavers a 1-0 edge early
- Third Inning
- BVU strung three singles together in the third inning to bring another run across to make the score 2-0 after two and a half innings played
- Jurgensen reached on a fielders choice following a Scott single, which led to a deep single to left field from Walton
- The ball was misplayed in the field which allowed Jurgensen to score, making the BVU lead 2-1 after three innings
- Fourth Inning
- The Beavers scored three runs in the fourth after the Knights had four-straight walked batters to begin the inning
- Kyle Thompson came into the game on the mound with one out and limited the damage for the Knights
- Wartburg got two runs back in the bottom half after loading the bases for Charlie Krueger, who singled to score one run before Scott hit a sacrifice fly to make it 5-3 after four innings
- Fifth Inning
- A one-out double got another rally started for BVU as they totaled three hits for one more run in the top half of the fifth
- Seventh Inning
- BVU hit an RBI-triple in the seventh inning to add another insurance run and make the score 7-3
- Ninth Inning
- Another Beaver extra-base hit in the final inning added one final run to the BVU total to make the score 8-3
- Wartburg continued fighting in the ninth as Armstrong, Jurgensen and Walton all singled to bring home one run
- BVU was able to close out a 8-4 win
Top Performers
Coach's Comments
"We have seen two great teams in our past five games here between Coe and Buena Vista," said head coach
Casey Klunder following today's doubleheader. "I hope we're able to learn from these games and see what it takes to be playing at a high level right now after competing against the top two teams in our conference and two teams that are ranked nationally."
"What a day for both Jurgensen and Troha at the plate in game one," said Klunder. "Both of these guys work extremely hard on getting better at the plate and I think today was an example of hard work and preparation paying off for both upper and underclassman."
"I think the key for us in game one was getting runs early as well as a solid start on the mound from
Cael Funk," continued Klunder. "In game two I think we just didn't put together enough good innings of at bats and pitching to beat a talented team like Buena Vista."
The Knights wrapped up regular season play at home today with a record of 8-6. "We're so lucky to be able to call Harms Stadium at Hertel Field home," said Klunder. "The fans brought awesome energy to the games all season and made it a great atmosphere to be in. We also got the chance to do a lot of cool events at home like our fourth-year senior day, fifth-year senior day and a cancer awareness game."
Notes/Streaks
- Back-to-back wins against nationally ranked opponents
- Defeated No. 16/18 Coe in game two on Saturday, Apr. 19 and then defeated No. 27/RV Buena Vista in game one today
- Game one marked the most runs scored for Wartburg against Buena Vista since 2018
- Second win over Buena Vista in past two seasons (2-5 in that time)
- First career complete game for Ca. Funk
- Sixth home run of the season for Jurgensen
- Also extended his reached-base streak (19 games) and hitting streak (14 games)
- Wartburg pitching staff appearance totals following today
- Season RBI totals following today:
- Stubitz (29), Walton (26), Schmitt (22), Jurgensen (21), Troha (18), Krueger (8), Robinson (6) and Scott (4)
- Ca. Funk is now 2-3 in decisions this season
Next Time Out
The Knights will be in action next on Friday, Apr. 25 on the road against Nebraska Wesleyan University at 6 p.m. in Lincoln, Neb.
