(Easley, SC) – Concordia baseball continued pool play on day 2 of the NCCAA World Series on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals faced off first against #10 seed Toccoa Falls College, falling 8-7 in a close contest. CUAA nearly mounted another comeback in the nightcap against #3 seed Columbia International University, but the team fell 6-4.
Game 1 - #10 TFC 8, #2 CUAA 7
Brendan Lyons started game 1 on the mound. Concordia went ahead in the top of the 1st with 2 runs. Adam Purdy got on base with a double, stole third, and eventually scored on a wild pitch. Chris Lowe added an RBI double to score Calvin Syrjala.
Toccoa Falls responded with 3 runs in the bottom of the 1st and tacked on another 2 runs in the 2nd to go up 5-2. The Cardinals answered with a 4-run 3rd inning to retake the lead. Grant Steinborn hit a deep 2-RBI double that drove in Calvin Syrjala and Adam Purdy. Jimmy Wressel used a sacrifice fly to score Steinborn and Chris Lowe recorded the go-ahead run after an error at first base.
Timothy Pomaville came on to pitch in the bottom of the 3rd, recording 5 strikeouts in 2.1 innings. Concordia turned a double play in the 3rd after a strikeout when catcher Dylan Steinke also threw out the runner at second base. Pomaville struck out all 3 batters he faced in the 4th inning.
The Cardinals added another run in the 5th when Grant Steinborn hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Calvin Syrjala. However, Toccoa Falls retook the lead with 3 runs in the bottom of the 5th to gain an 8-7 advantage.
Concordia had runners at the corners in the 6th inning but was unable to score. Toccoa Falls finished off all three Cardinal batters in the 7th to secure the win.
Game 2 – #3 CIU 6, #2 CUAA 4
Joe Tany started game 2 on the mound, making 2 strikeouts in 1.2 innings. Columbia International struck first with a run in the bottom of the 1st inning.
CIU extended their advantage with a 5-run 2nd inning to go up 6-0. Tyson Kleinfelter came in to pitch in relief late in the inning, making 3 total strikeouts in 4.1 innings while giving up just 2 hits.
Concordia began to mount a comeback effort in the 4th with a 4-run inning. Victor Diaz crushed a hit over the third baseman's head and drove in Chris Lowe to break the shutout. Grant Steinborn then hit a deep RBI double to score Diaz. A sacrifice bunt by Dylan Steinke scored Steinborn and Preston Sherman used an RBI single to drive in Calvin Syrjala.
Tyson Kleinfelter added 2 strikeouts in the 5th inning, but both pitchers continued to hold the opposing offense in check. Columbia International was able to record three outs in the 7th to close out th
