LIVE STATS vs SMSU (3/14, 11 a.m. CT)

TUCSON, Ariz. - Concordia-St. Paul baseball (5-1) suffered its first loss of the 2014 season on Thursday afternoon, falling 5-2 to Northern State (4-4) in a non-conference meeting between the two NSIC teams at Kino Sports Complex field six in the Tucson Invitational.

Sophomore shortstop Eric Fasnacht went 3-3 at the plate to increase his average to .600 as he's 12-20 in the first six games of the year with four multi-hit games and a pair of three-hit games.

The Wolves scored a run in each of the second and third innings to take a 2-0 lead into the later innings in Concordia left handed pitcher Kevin Woebke's debut start.

Woebke was solid into the third time through the Northern State lineup as he struck out three and allowed five hits through his first 5.0 innings.

In the sixth, Woebke wasn't able to pitch out of trouble as his afternoon ended after facing the Wolves lineup three complete times through.

He would take the loss, allowing four earned runs in 5.1 innings.

Senior right handed reliever Colton Petron was fabulous out of the bullpen, throwing 3.2 hitless innings while only allowing one of Woebke's runners to score on a suicide squeeze bunt.

Petron struck out six and only walked one in his first appearance of the season.

Meanwhile, Concordia's offense wasn't able to string together a rally to get back into the game until the eighth inning. Prior to that, the Golden Bears scattered three singles and three walks against NSU starter John Eckstein.

In the eighth, the Bears' bats came back out of hibernation as redshirt freshman Joe Muench and Fasnacht hit back-to-back one out singles from the bottom of the lineup to turn it over to junior Tyler Krekling at the top, who walked to load the bases. Muench's hit was the first of his career.

Junior Kyle Dalton then extended his hitting streak to 17 games with a two-run single to chase Eckstein from the game with the tying run at the plate, represented by sophomore Ryan Poppitz.

Poppitz had a tough luck day at the plate, hitting a rocket line out double play in the third before getting retired on a comebacker off Eckstein's foot in the sixth.

In the eighth, Poppitz unloaded on a pitch but directly into the wind and to the deepest part of the field in center for a deep flyout and Concordia would end up stranding two runners on to end its biggest threat of the day.

With Eckstein out of the game, Kris Keating came in to earn the save as he struck out two over 1.2 scoreless innings. Eckstein earned the win, working 7.1 innings allowing two runs on six hits with four strikeouts.

Robbie Rocamora led Northern State by going 2-3 with a home run and a walk while Eric O'Bryan and Robert Fahlin were each 1-4 with two RBI.

Concordia will face Southwest Minnesota State in a non-conference doubleheader tomorrow with first pitch scheduled for 11 a.m. (central).