FAYETTE, Iowa - Concordia-St. Paul baseball (6-12) dropped a non-conference road game 5-3 on Tuesday afternoon at Upper Iowa (7-11) at Robertson Woods Field.

Concordia has concluded its non-conference slate for the season, and turns its sights to this weekend's 4-game series against Northern State (4-11, 0-8 NSIC). The series is scheduled for Barnes Field on CSP's campus, but field conditions combined with incoming weather may force a change, to be announced later this week.

Aside from a rocky 4-run fifth inning for the Peacocks, Concordia's pitching staff held UIU to one unearned run in the other seven frames in the contest. Leo Bustos worked a pair of no-hit innings to start the game, walking three without allowing a run. Andrew Boeser pitched the third and fourth innings and started the fifth before leaving with no outs and runners on base. Christian Lindow would pitch 3.0 scoreless innings, striking out a pair and allowing three hits and a walk. Cooper Mollet worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning with a strikeout. 

Much like CSP, Upper Iowa also went with a bullpen game with Mason Adkins earning the start and the only UIU pitcher to work 2.0 innings. He allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits and four walks. For the rest of the day, the Peacocks went inning-by-inning in their bullpen. UIU matched CSP with seven scoreless innings, too, but the difference would be UIU's 4-run 5th against CSP's 2-run second. Upper Iowa's staff day included 13 strikeouts against eight walks drawn by Concordia hitters, allowing six hits to the Golden Bears. Cameron Powell picked up the win with a scoreless fifth while JJ Vargas secured the save with a scoreless ninth. 

The Golden Bears left 13 on base in the game compared to seven for Upper Iowa including runners on first and second in the ninth. 

Concordia left the bases loaded in the first before plating a pair in the second. Leadoff walks to Eli Nelson and Charlie Harms allowed Jack Setterlund to move them to second and third with a sacrifice bunt for the first out. With two outs, Bennett McCollow brought Eli Nelson and Charlie Harms home on a pair of errors on the shortstop, with CSP leaving runners on first and second to end the inning.

The Golden Bears would load the bases again in the fourth, this time with one out, but would come up empty with a double play erasing the threat. 

In the seventh trailing 5-2, Concordia rallied again, starting with Noah Juliar's 1-out double to left field and followed by Will Husemann getting hit by pitch to put two on with one out. Thomas Lee would contribute a 2-out RBI single to right, scoring Juliar and Chase McQuade had a pinch hit walk to put runners on the corners with two outs and the tying run on base with CSP leaving them aboard. 

In the ninth, once again Concordia looked to rally with two outs as Kaden Johnson reached on an error, and Thomas Lee walked to put the tying run on base and go-ahead run at the plate before UIU closed the door.

Juliar went 2-4 with his seventh double and also drew a walk. McCollow and Lee were 1-4 with an RBI and a walk and Harms also reached base twice, going 1-3 with a walk and a run.