SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Concordia-St. Paul baseball (14-9, 6-8 NSIC) split with Northern State (11-13, 6-8 NSIC) after claiming game two with a 12-2 run-rule victory on Friday at the Sanford Diamonds.
 
With the win in game two, CSP extended their all-time record against NSU to 49-19. In addition, today marks the first time since 2017 and the third time in series history that the Golden Bears have won via rule-rule over Northern State.
 
As a team, Concordia combined for 16 RBIs, 15 hits and eight walks in the doubleheader. Mason Nadolney and Jaden Werner each contributed with home runs in the game. Nadolney extended his conference-leading home run total to 11, while Werner added his fourth of the 2024 campaign.
 
Reigning Central Region Player of the Week, Nick Thimsen, has shown no signs of slowing down with a strong performance this afternoon at the plate. The Minnetonka, Minnesota native finished with three hits that included a pair of doubles, three RBIs, two runs and a walk.
 
Kal Brohmer, Noah Juliar and Brayden Roybal added three hit days at the plate for the Golden Bears. Brohmer led the team with a .500 batting average, while Juliar had the most RBIs after driving in four runners.
 
GAME ONE: CSP 4, NSU 6
Northern State used six runs on three hits, along with strong pitching in the series opener to power past the Golden Bears.
 
On the mound, junior Korey Dahlberg (2-2) was charged with the loss. The Farmington, Minnesota native went 6.0 innings with a pair of strikeouts, allowing only three hits and one earned run. The opposing pitcher, Max Otto (4-1), collected eight strikeouts and forced six groundouts to claim his fourth win of the season.
 
The Wolves struck first with four runs in the third inning without acquiring a hit, as three errors plagued CSP defensively and assisted NSU's scoring. However, CSP did not have another error occur for the rest the day.
 
Koby McBroome had the biggest barrel of the game for Concordia with a 2-RBI double to left center in the fifth that drove in Justin McGuigan and Nadolney. In the very next at-bat, Bennett McCollow tied the game at four runs with a 2-RBI single to center field that drove in McBroome and Roybal.
 
Northern State answered in the next half inning with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth to go back in front. They carried their momentum into the final two innings en route to the two-run victory.
 
GAME TWO: CSP 12, NSU 2 (Seven Innings)
The Golden Bears bounced back in game two with their third run-rule victory of the season. CSP had a pair of four-run innings and held NSU scoreless for five innings. In addion, they exploded offensively with 15 hits and scored 12 times to claim the 12-2 win.
 
Concordia wasted no time at all getting their offense rolling in game two after scoring five runs in the opening two innings of play. Juliar sparked the scoring with an RBI single to right field in the opening inning before CSP added four more runs in the second inning highlighted by a 2-RBI double from Thimsen to extend the Golden Bears lead to 5-0.
 
Gavin Rusch (4-2) had a career day on the mound for the Golden Bears. The junior righty retired 13 consecutive batters to begin the game and finished with five strikeouts and zero walks to claim his first-career complete game victory. Also, his 2.57 single-game earned run average is the lowest of his career.
 
Nadolney added his 14th career homer in the fourth inning. His 2-run bomb to center field, along with Thimsen's second RBI double and Juliar's second RBI single gave Concordia a 9-0 cushion.
 
After the Wolves scored their first run of the game in the fifth, Werner made his presence known in his return to the starting lineup with his fourth home run of the season.
 
In the final inning, Juliar scored CSP's final run of the game with a 2-RBI double to left center field, making the score 12-1. NSU added their final run of the game with a home run from Michael Benevides, but it was not enough to stop the Golden Bears from claiming the 12-2 victory.
 
UP NEXT
The Golden Bears will return to action tomorrow for the doubleheader finale against the Northern State Wolves. Tomorrow's first pitch from the Sanford Diamonds in Sioux Falls is slated to begin at 12:00 p.m. with game two following shortly after.