(Ann Arbor, MI) – Concordia baseball competed in the WHAC conference tournament on Wednesday and Thursday, serving as a host site.  The #2 seed Cardinals matched up against the #4 seed Cornerstone on Wednesday afternoon, falling 4-2.  CUAA stormed back on Thursday with a 7-2 win over #3 seed UNOH.

Game 1 - #4 CU 4, #2 CUAA 2

Grant Steinborn started on the mound in game 1 on Wednesday, making 3 strikeouts in 5 innings.  Both defenses held strong with no runs through the first 4 innings of the game.

Cornerstone got on the board first with 2 runs in the 5^th.  Ryan Kotecki came on to pitch in the 6^th, notching 4 strikeouts in the remaining 4 innings.  The Golden Eagles added another run in the 6^th to go up 3-0.

The Cardinals broke the shutout on an unusual play in the 7^th.  After a groundout by RJ Bortle, Cornerstone's pitcher rolled the ball down towards the dugout mistakenly believing that time had been called.  Vann Acker and Preston Sherman were able to score on the error, cutting the deficit to 3-2.

Cornerstone added a run in the 9^th to take a 4-2 lead.  The Cardinals threatened in the bottom of the 9^th with runners at the corners, but the Golden Eagles were able to get the final out to close out the game.

Game 2 - #2 CUAA 7, #3 UNOH 2

Tyson Kleinfelter pitched a complete game on Thursday afternoon, racking up 6 strikeouts.  The Cardinals struck first in the bottom of the 2^nd when Calvin Syrjala made it home on an error after Chris Lowe stole second.  Vann Acker then crushed a 2-run homer to drive in himself and Lowe for a 3-0 lead.

The Cardinals continued to capitalize on errors as Preston Sherman, Chris Lowe, and Calvin Syrjala reached home on an error by UNOH's pitcher.  RJ Bortle hit an RBI single to score Vann Acker, extending the team's lead to 7-0.

Tyson Kleinfelter pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the 6^th inning.  Concordia turned a double play on defense to get out of the 7^th.  The Cardinals added a double play in the 9^th, but UNOH was able to break the shutout with 2 runs.  Kleinfelter induced a popup to close out the game and claim the 7-2 win.

Concordia will now face UNOH at 1pm on Saturday with the winner advancing to the WHAC championship 

⚾️VANN (SM)ACKER��

Acker takes the Racers' starter DEEP in the 2nd inning to give @CUAABaseball a 3-0 lead! ��#GoCards pic.twitter.com/movfqdyIX6

— Concordia Cardinals (@CUAACardinals) May 7, 2021