ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul baseball team (3-0) opens NSIC play this weekend with a four-game series against the Minot State Beavers (1-3) at Reynolds Field in Roseville, Minnesota. The first pitch on each day is set for 12 p.m., with game two directly following afterward.
 
WATCH ONLINE - NSIC NETWORK
Powered by the NSIC Network, all Northern Sun home and away baseball games will be broadcast online, free of charge, weather permitting. Visit www.nsicnetwork.com/cspbears to watch the Golden Bears. Away games will feature production by the host institution, while home games are broadcast using BlueFrame Technology with the play-by-play call of Dan Flanagan, voice of the Golden Bears for over a decade. Flanagan is a St. Paul native who professionally trained in broadcasting at Fordham University in New York where he was the voice of the basketball and football teams, among other sports. NSIC Network Announcement & FAQ
 
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NADOLNEY NAMED NSIC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Mason Nadolney was named the NSIC Player of the Year following an impressive showing against the Newman Jets last week. The senior slashed .438/.500/.1.313 from the plate with seven hits, including four home runs and a pair of doubles. In addition, the Minnetonka, Minnesota native recorded 15 RBIs and scored eight runs of his own.
 
OPENING THE SEASON STRONG
Concordia-St. Paul baseball lit up the scoreboard with 61 runs on 48 hits, including 24 extra-base hits to open the season. In addition, the Golden Bears' .397 on-base percentage is heavily credited to their 31 walks and 10 hit-by pitches. On the mound, the Golden Bears collected 24 strikeouts and 12 walks and held the Jets to a .342 batting average in 25.0 IP.
 
With the series sweep, Concordia tabbed their first series-opening win since 2021 against Purdue Northwest (Ind.). Also, they averaged their series loss to Newman in the 2022 season opener and overtook the all-time series against the Jets, 4-3.
 
GAME ONE RECAP: On Saturday, run-ruled the Jets 18-4 in seven innings to kick off the season.
 
 Nadolney hit his fourth career home run and the Golden Bears' first home run of the season. The Minnetonka, Minnesota native finished 2-4 with 4 RBIs, two runs, a double and a walk. Nick Thimsen, Bennett McCollow, and Kal Brohmer also had extra-base hits in the afternoon.
 
The Golden Bears had three players notch three hits at the plate. Jaden Werner was a perfect 3-3 with 3 RBIs, a pair of walks and a run scored. Juliar added a 3-hit game with a game-leading 6 RBIs, a pair of doubles and two runs scored, while Justin McGuigan was near perfect 3-4 with three runs and a walk.
 
The pitching staff, led by junior Korey Dahlberg - making his 21st career start on the bump for the Golden Bears - had an exceptional showing on opening day. The Farmington, Minnesota native tallied four strikeouts and only allowed two walks in 4.0 innings of work to record his ninth career win on the mound.
 
It did not take long for the Golden Bears to find an offensive rhythm, as they scored four runs in the top of the first inning of the season. The scoring was sparked by doubles from Thimsen, Noah Juliar and Jaden Werner.
 
In the second inning, Concordia added their most runs in an inning after scoring five runs on five hits. The scoring barrage was highlighted by 2-RBI doubles from McCollow and Juliar, along with an RBI double from Werner that drove in Juliar to give them a 9-3 advantage.
 
With the bases loaded in the third inning, Thimsen drew an RBI walk that drove in Ju. McGuigan before Juliar added his third 2-RBI double that dropped into center field, scoring Brayden Roybal and McCollow. Nadolney added a 2-RBI double of his own in the fourth to give CSP a 14-3 lead and an opportunity to end the game early via run rule.
 
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Jack Greenlun, who swapped roles in the battery from his primary spot as a catcher, made his pitching debut in the Navy and Gold. Jake McNeil and Matt Sherman also appeared from the bullpen to close the game out.
 
In the final innings, a 2-run home run to deep center field by Nadolny added to the Golden Bears' run-rule advantage before they added a sacrifice fly from Koby McBroome and an RBI double by Brohmer in the seventh inning to seal the game, 18-4.
 
GAME TWO RECAP: On Sunday, the pair of NCAA Central Regional opponents lit up the scoreboard as they combined for 42 runs in a wild 25-17 game that went in favor of the Golden Bears.
 
After trailing for the first time in the series, the Golden Bears picked up momentum with back-to-back three-run innings to take an earlier 6-1 advantage. Midway through the game, Newman rallied with eight combined runs in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Golden Bears kept the bats hot, scoring 18 runs in the final four innings to steal the victory.
 
CSP collected 15 hits as a team. Thimsen had a great day at the plate after going 4-5 with six RBIs and three runs scored. McCollow added an impressive 3-5 outing with four runs scored and four runners driven in.
 
Gavin Rusch made his first start of the season on the bump this season. The Green Bay, Wisconsin native recorded 4.1 innings with a trio of strikeouts. Eric Lundell (1-0) collected the win out of the bullpen with a game-high five strikeouts in 2.2 innings pitched.
 
Juliar and Nadolney showed power from the batter's box with a home run each in the third and fourth innings. Juliar blasted a 2-run shot to left field in the second inning to give CSP their first lead of the game, while Nadolney's second home run of the season drove home Thimsen, who sparked the scoring in the fourth with an RBI double to right field.
 
Newman would not go away quickly, though, as they regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning with five runs on six hits.
 
Back-to-back five-run innings right before the seventh inning stretch helped shift momentum back into Concordia's favor. This 10-run offensive explosion was highlighted by a 3-RBI double from Thimsen in the sixth inning and a 2-RBI double by Werner in the seventh helped propel CSP to a 16-10 lead.
 
Concordia's best inning of the game was in the eighth when the Bears tallied six runs on a pair of hits to go up by 12 runs, highlighted by McCollow's 3-RBI double. Later on, Nadolney drove in a run with an RBI single to center field, Thimsen scored on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly from Werner added the final run.
 
With the game in jeopardy of ending early, the Jets responded with a strong 5-Run eighth inning to cut the Golden Bears lead to seven. However, in the final inning, CSP recorded their third three-run inning, highlighted by an RBI double by Thimsen in route to a 25-17 victory.
 
GAME THREE RECAP: On the Monday finale, Concordia secured the sweep with a dominant 18-10 victory over Newman on their home turf.
 
Concordia recorded 18 runs on 16 hits as a team. In doing so, they now hold a 4-3 series all-time advantage over the Newman Jets. This is the first time the Golden Bears have claimed a season-opening series since 2021 after besting Purdue Northwest 3-1.
 
Nadolney had an outstanding game in the Navy and Gold with a pair of home runs and seven RBIs on a 3-hit afternoon. Two other players reached three hits for the game, as Senior Werner and McCollow each went 3-5 from the plate. Werner also had a homer run, while McCollow added six RBIs to his impressive debut series at Concordia.
 
The pitching staff was busy with five players throwing from the bump throughout the game. Reece Piontek made his ninth career start for the Golden Bear and pitched a perfect 2.0 innings on the mound in the no decision. Freshman Ian Segna (1-0) made his first collegiate appearance and picked up the win, and Matt Sherman led CSP with a pair of strikeouts.
 
Much like the series' opening two games, CSP dominated the opening innings of action to take a 10-0 lead. Newman battled throughout the game and cut the game to four runs as late as the seventh innings but could not keep pace with the Golden Bears, who scored eight runs in the final six innings in route to the eighth-run victory on the road.
 
CSP picked up where they left off less than 24 hours ago in the opening two innings of action. An RBI double from Nadolney sparked the scoring after driving in McCollow and Kal Brohmer at the top of the first. Werner and McCollow added to the scoring during that time with an RBI single and 3-RBI double, respectively, before Nadolney blasted a 3-run homer in the second to extend CSP's lead to 10-0.
 
After hitting a three-inning scoring skid, Nadolney awoke the Bears' offense with his fourth home run of the season in the sixth. Jaden Werner added his first homer of the season in the eighth, and Koby McBroome added a 2-RBI single in the ninth before Sherman closed out the game and secured the 18-10 victory for CSP.
 
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST MINOT
The Golden Bears and Beavers have met 22 times since 2014, with the series tied 11-11. Concordia dominated the early stages of the series with doubleheader wins in Minot, North Dakota and Tucson, Arizona. Minot holds a slight 6-4 advantage over the last 10 matchups, but the Golden Bears won last year's series 2-1 at the Woodside Sports Complex in Mauston, Wisconsin. CSP has scored 99 runs with an average of 4.5 per game.
 
ABOUT THE BEAVERS
Minot State posted a 29-19 (20-14 NSIC) record in the 2023 campaign and was picked to finish seventh in the NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll with 103 points.
 
The Beavers hold a 1-3 record after opening the season last week in Denver, Colorado, against Regis (Colo.). After dropping the first two games against the Rangers 5-3 and 9-5, Minot State responded with a 20-5 victory. However, Regis bounced back with an 18-8 finale win to claim the series outright.
 
The player to watch for Minot is Colon Bagshaw. The senior two-way player has slashed .389/.389/.611 with seven hits, four of which have been doubles. He has also scored a pair of runs and driven in four runners.
 
The pitcher to watch is Craig Schmich (0-1). The senior right-handed pitcher has an ERA of 6.23 and a WHIP of 2.08 after 4.1 innings of action on the bump. He has three strikeouts and has only walked one batter.