ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia baseball team (18-12) picked up a split on Saturday afternoon at Barnes Field against the University of Sioux Falls (8-24) in a pair of non-conference, 7-inning contests. Concordia used a sixth inning rally to win the first game 11-8 before being shutout in the second game in a 4-0 loss. The two teams are scheduled for two more 7-inning games tomorrow at noon at Barnes Field to complete the four game series. BOX SCORES: Game 1 | Game 2 | Photo Gallery coming soon
Game 1: CU 11, Sioux Falls 8
Junior right fielder
Paul Giel III (Minnetonka, Minn.) hit his third 3-run home run of the season in a 5-run bottom of the second inning to put the Golden Bears ahead early.
USF chipped away with a run in the third and two more in the fouth inning to cut the score to 5-3.
The Golden Bears answered in the bottom of the fourth, as senior
Bryan Lippincott (Des Moines, Iowa) delivered an RBI double after junior
Greg Larpenter (Urbandale, Iowa) had scored on the previous play on an errant throw from center field sailed into the CU dugout.
The two runs gave Concordia a 7-3 lead entering the late innings.
In the sixth, the Cougars rallied for five runs, chasing starter
Adam Kramer (Wausau, Wis.) from the game with the bases loaded and an 8-7 lead. Out of the bullpen, senior designated hitter
Logan Bouts (Hopkins, Minn.) allowed a two-run double before stopping the rally by forcing a groundout to end the 5-run inning with USF leading 8-7.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Giel led off with a walk and Larpenter followed with a double to the gap in left center. With one out, Lippincott was walked intentionally before Bouts evened the score with a two-run hit of his own, a single on a chopper over the third baseman to avenge the two run double he allowed in the top of the inning.
Senior
Doug Stearns (Minnetonka, Minn.) followed with an RBI single and Bouts came around to score when freshman
Kyle Dalton (Minnetonka, Minn.) grounded into a fielder's choice, with the shortstop committing a throwing error trying to throw behind Bouts at third.
Ahead by three, Bouts was in line for the win as freshman right hander
Nicho Roessler (St. Anthony, Minn.) picked up his second save.
Larpenter went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, giving him 12 on the year, and scored twice. Lippincott's double was his 16th as he went 1-for-3 with a run, an RBI and his 11th intentional walk of the season. Bouts went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI, once again making an opponent pay for issuing a free pass to Lippincott with his two-run single in the sixth. And behind Bouts, Stearns went 3-for-4 with an RBI.
Game 2: Sioux Falls 4, CU 0
In the second game, the Golden Bears left four runners in scoring position but never had a baserunner reach third as USF starter Derek Fischer scattered four singles and a double. Concordia's lone extra base hit was Larpenter's third double of the day, a two-out double to the gap in left center for his 13th of the year in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Fischer would improve to 5-1 with the win, working 6.2 innings as Larpenter's double chased him from the game just shy of the complete game shutout. He holds a 2.70 earned run average on the year after the outing.
For Concordia, senior right hander
Chris Peterson (St. Anthony, Minn.) took the loss despite going the distance in a solid effort. He allowed four earned runs on 11 hits, but struck out six and didn't walk anyone as he falls to 2-2 on the year.
Junior left fielder
Drew Turk (Plainfield, Ill.) went 2-for-4 and is hitting .455 on the season. Lippincott, batting behind Turk, went 0-for-2 but was hit by a pitch and swiped his sixth stolen base of the season.
