SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Concordia-St. Paul baseball team (21-27, 12-23 NSIC) closed out the 2019 season with a win as they bounced back from a 5-3 loss in game one to take game two 4-3 over Sioux Falls (13-37, 11-25 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon.
 
CSP moved to 18-9 in the all-time series against the Cougars with the season-ending split. The doubleheader marked the final contests for Concordia's 16-player senior class as the group helped the Golden Bears reach three NSIC Tournaments and two NSIC Championship games.
 
Carter Schmidt picked up three hits on the day to finish his career with 183 over four seasons while Isaac Hormann grabbed his 170^th career hit. Schmidt finishes sixth in the CSP DII era in hits while Hormann finished ninth. Senior pitcher Keanu Mendez added his 33^rd career appearance on the mound and 26^th career start as he struck out eight to bring his total to 136 as a Golden Bear.
 
GAME ONE: Sioux Falls 5, Concordia-St. Paul 3
After falling behind in the opening frame, the Golden Bears took a 2-1 lead through two and a half innings, but the Cougars scored four of the game's final five runs to seal a 5-3 victory.
 
The top of the CSP order did most of the damage offensively as all six hits came from the top six in the order. Bordewick paced the squad with a pair of hits and an RBI while Carter Schmidt finished 1-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Cole Kirchoff tallied the team's only extra base hit with a double.
 
Blake Stelzer (3-2), making his first start of the season, took the loss on the mound as he allowed four runs over 3.0 innings while striking out four. Luke DeGrammont allowed just a solo home run over 2.0 innings before Ray Wellner pitched a scoreless sixth inning.
 
Sioux Falls opened the scoring in the bottom of the first as they took advantage of some timely hitting. With two outs and a runner on third, Alex Robinson deposited an RBI single to center to put USF on top.
 
The Golden Bears flipped the momentum in their favor in the top of the third with a pair of runs to take the lead. CSP managed the rally with the aid of just one hit to the outfield as Carter Schmidt was hit by a pitch, moved up on a passed ball and scored on an error with Isaac Hormann at the plate. Bordewick followed with a single to right to give Concordia a 2-1 lead.
 
That lead was short-lived, however, as the Cougars responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning. USF collected six hits in the inning, including RBI singles from Josh Rehwaldt, Sam Michels and Trey Hubers, to regain the edge at 4-2.
 
CSP was back within a run an inning later as Chandler Ibach drew a walk and moved up two bases on wild pitches before Schmidt drove him in with a single.
 
That would be all the closer that the Golden Bears would get as Rehwaldt tacked on an insurance run with a solo shot in the fifth to bring the score to the final margin of 5-3.
 
GAME TWO: Concordia-St. Paul 4, Sioux Falls 3
Game two was a back-and-forth contest as the Cougars led early before the Golden Bears jumped out front 2-1, 3-2 and 4-3 en route to claiming the win.
 
The Golden Bears took advantage of their opportunities as they turned seven hits into four runs in the game. Carter Schmidt closed out his career on a high note as he went 2-4 with a double and a run batted in while fellow senior Steven Nessler added two hits as well. Seniors Ben Suits and Drew Sannes each contributed doubles while Jeffrey Kressler, singled, scored a run and drove in another.
 
Keanu Mendez worked deep into the contest as he lasted 7.2 innings in a no-decision. The senior right-hander allowed just three runs on six hits while striking out eight. Shane Benson (3-1) picked up where he left off by retiring four Cougars in a row for the win.
 
For the third straight game in the series, it was the Cougars that struck first with a run in the bottom half of the first. It was once again Josh Rehwaldt that did the damage as he launched his second home run of the day to give USF the 1-0 lead after one.
 
The lead lasted until the third as the Golden Bears got the run back before scoring another in the fourth to build a lead of their own. CSP came out swinging in the top of the third as Drew Sannes opened the frame with a double before Carter Schmidt singled to put runners on the corners with nobody out. Two batters later, Patrick Bordewick reached on an error to bring home Sannes and tie the game. An inning later, a pair of singles and a walk loaded the bases for Schmidt, who sent a sacrifice fly to center to bring in the second run of the game for Concordia.
 
CSP's lead lasted just a half an inning as Trey Hubers drove in the tying run on a double to even the score at 2-2 through four.
 
It took until the seventh to break the deadlock as Concordia regained the lead. CSP loaded the bases with an error, a hit by pitch and a walk before another sacrifice fly, this time off the bat of Jeffrey Kressler, put the Golden Bears back in front.
 
CSP came within four outs of holding onto the 3-2 lead, but a Cougar run in the bottom of the eighth evened it up heading to the ninth. A Grant Lung double followed by a pair of walks loaded the bases with one out as USF threatened to take the lead. Mendez hunkered down and got a fielder's choice with an out being recorded at the plate, but a walk one batter later tied the game back up. Benson then came on and picked up a groundout to keep the score tied after eight.
 
Concordia quickly regained the lead as they answered right back with a run in the ninth. Ben Suits delivered the big hit as he doubled to left with one out before pinch runner Cole Kirchoff stole third and came around to score on an errant throw to third to give CSP a 4-3 edge.
 
Benson took care of business from there as he retired the side in order in the bottom of the inning to close out the season with a win.