SIOUX CITY, Iowa – After a forgettable game 1, the 20th-ranked Concordia University Baseball team responded in game 2 of Saturday (April 10)’s doubleheader at Bishop Mueller Field in Sioux City, Iowa. Ben Berg delivered a grand slam and Nick Little put together another quality pitching performance in an 8-3 victory over Briar Cliff. The Bulldogs dropped the first game by a score of 8-0.
Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s squad is now halfway through the GPAC regular season slate and stands at 24-5 overall (11-3 GPAC). Concordia is trying to keep pace with Doane (13-3 GPAC) at the top of the standings.
“I was pretty disappointed in the way that we played the first game,” Dupic said. “We struggled to score and their guy pitched well. I wasn’t so much disappointed in that as I was in how poorly we played defensively. That’s frustrating at this point of the season. We bounced back and were better in the second game. We got a really big swing by Ben Berg on the grand slam. Nick actually got hit in the throwing arm on a come-backer so he really toughed it out today. Ryan Samuelson came in and did a great job … I hope we can be a little more consistent moving forward.”
The Bulldogs struck first in game 2 when Noah Jannsen produced a pinch-hit RBI single in the second inning. An inning later, Keaton Candor belted a two-run homer (23rd of career) to make it a 3-0 lead. Berg gave Concordia the breathing room it needed in the sixth when he sent a grand slam over the left field wall, making it an 8-1 ballgame.
That type of run support has been money in the bank when Little (4-0) is on the mound. He earned a win in his eighth-straight start. The Chargers finally got to him with a run in the sixth and two in the seventh. In six frames, Little allowed three runs on four hits and three walks to go along with seven strikeouts. Samuelson then fired the final three innings (no hits) and was credited with the save.
The bats were dormant in game 1 when Briar Cliff’s Jacob Wesselmann tossed a seven-inning, two-hit shutout. He walked only one batter and recorded nine strikeouts. The Chargers (23-10, 7-7 GPAC) got a grand slam of their own via Jake Allen in the fifth. Allen drove in five runs in the opener. Allen did his damage off of Bulldog starting pitcher Trenton Wood (4-1), who allowed seven runs in 4.2 innings.
In the second game, Candor went 2-for-4 with two runs, a double, a home run and three RBIs. Jose Cevallos went 3-for-5 and Beau Dorman collected two hits and a run scored.
Saturday’s games were originally scheduled to be played at Plum Creek Park in Seward, but were moved due to wet field conditions. The same two teams will meet in Seward on Sunday when Concordia will celebrate 13 seniors. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. CT.