MARYVILLE, Mo. - The Concordia-St. Paul baseball team (1-3) dropped the series opener 6-3 at Northwest Missouri State (5-7) on Thursday afternoon at Bearcat Baseball Field.
It was the first of three games in the Central Region series. Friday's game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch.
The Golden Bears took the first lead with a leadoff home run by
Trett Joles in the second inning, but it was short-lived as the Bearcats answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning. They'd hold the lead the rest of the day, adding two more runs in the fifth.
Concordia would mount a comeback attempt in the sixth inning, with
Will Husemann adding the team's second leadoff homer of the game. Joles followed with a double, and would score after a pair of productive groundouts to pull CSP within a pair of runs, 5-3.
In the top of the eighth inning, the Golden Bears put the tying run in scoring position as Husmann produced a 1-out single and Joles would be hit by pitch. The duo moved to second and third on a groundout, but were stranded with two outs.
NWMSU scored in the bottom of the inning to extend the lead to three runs and the Golden Bears went out in order in the ninth to end the series opener.
Concordia's middle of the order, the 3-through-6 hitters, went 8-14 and all four hitters had a pair of hits.
Bennett McCollow, in the third spot, went 2-3 and extended his streak of reaching safely (H, BB, HBP) to 18 games.
Noah Juliar went 2-4 with his second double of the year and has hit safely in all four games to start the season.
Husemann and Joles provided the punch with a pair of solo homers, Husemann hitting his second of the year, while Joles had a pair of extra-base hits with a double and homer. Husemann was 2-4 and Joles was 2-3, adding an HBP and a run.
Bearcat leadoff hitter Ashton Neuman went 1-4 with his third home run and four RBIs.
CSP starting pitcher
Ian Segna worked 5.0 innings in his 2025 debut, allowing five runs on five hits and four walks with four strikeouts.
Liam Bystol led the bullpen with 2.0 shutout innings, allowing a pair of hits with a strikeout.
Jack Greenlun finished the game for CSP's staff, getting the final two outs, inducing a double play to end a Bearcat threat.
Leonardo May picked up the win for NWMSU in relief, hurling a pair of perfect innings in the middle of the contest while Logan Brasel earned the save with a perfect ninth, striking out two.
