LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – Five errors paved the way for seven unearned runs for Freed-Hardeman University (Tenn.), which won Monday (May 15)’s NAIA National Championship Opening Round game simply by playing cleaner baseball. The miscues were the main culprit for a Concordia University Baseball program making its fifth all-time appearance in the opening round. The second-seeded Lions of Henderson, Tenn., emerged with a 7-4 victory on day one of the Lawrenceville (Ga.) Bracket hosted by Georgia Gwinnett College in the sultry Peach State.
Head Coach Ryan Dupic has been at the controls for each of the program’s five trips to nationals. This one stung for the third-seeded Bulldogs (38-17) because they left the park feeling like they had beat themselves.
“We just didn’t play well – really bad defensively,” Dupic said. “I don’t know if there’s any other way to put it. We didn’t deserve to win today. We’re going to have to be better on Tuesday if we want to have a chance to win. We didn’t play the way we’re capable of and that’s not going to get it done against a really good team like Freed-Hardeman.”
In the program’s 18th all-time game in an opening round, Concordia shook off a 2-0 deficit in the middle innings when the bats came alive with a run in the fourth and three in the fifth. Jesse Garcia doubled and scored on a two-out RBI single by Alec Blakestad to get the Bulldogs on the board in the fourth. Then in the fifth, Carlos Benavides tripled in a run and was plated by Jay Adams’ single to left. Concordia’s final tally of the game occurred on Joey Grabanski’s RBI groundout (200th career RBI).
Had the Bulldogs made the plays in the field, that production would have been enough. Frankie Cresta pitched solidly while making his second start in a row (also started the GPAC tournament final). The back breaker came in the sixth when the Lions scored four times on three hits and two errors while regaining the advantage for good. One more insurance run occurred in the seventh after Concordia failed to secure an out when it had a runner picked off first.
Cresta covered 5.1 innings and was tagged with the loss despite all six of the runs he allowed being labeled unearned. The 6-foot-4 righty from Johnston, Iowa, notched six strikeouts and scattered six hits. Blake Benson followed in relief and went 2.2 innings with one unearned run conceded on two hits and one walk. Benson recorded three strikeouts. Said Dupic, “I thought they threw pretty well today and made some big pitches at times.”
On the other side, Freed-Hardeman righty hurler Colton Huntt kept the powerful Bulldogs in the park and went six innings with four runs allowed (three earned) on six hits and two walks. Huntt fanned nine Concordia hitters. Luis Torres-Lopez then got the final nine outs for his fourth save this season. There was only a mild ninth-inning threat by the Bulldogs, who got a one-out single from Ty Nekoliczak. The Lions (38-19) have twice won NAIA opening round titles in their history.
Adams and Nekoliczak both went 2-for-4 on the day. The Bulldog lineup was limited to seven hits, including two that went for extra bases. Grabanski became the second player in school history to record 200 career RBIs, joining Garcia (214).
Concordia will attempt to stave off elimination on Tuesday morning in a matchup with Saint Xavier University (Ill.) (31-26). First pitch is set for 8 a.m. CT / 9 a.m. ET from the Grizzly Baseball Complex. The Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament champion Cougars were beaten on Monday by Midway University (Ky.), 6-5. The Concordia-Saint Xavier winner will play again on Tuesday at 5 p.m. ET in another elimination game. The full Lawrenceville Bracket is listed below.
2023 NAIA Opening Round – Lawrenceville Bracket
Site: Grizzly Baseball Complex | Lawrenceville, Ga.
Live Webcasts: https://ggcathletics.com/watch/
Live Stats: PrestoStats
All times are EDT
Monday, May 15
Game 1 – (4) Midway def. (5) Saint Xavier, 6-5
Game 2 – (2) Freed-Hardeman def. (3) Concordia, 7-4
Game 3 – (1) Georgia Gwinnett def. (4) Midway, 18-1
Tuesday, May 16
Game 4 – (3) Concordia vs. (5) Saint Xavier, 9 a.m.
Game 5 – (1) Georgia Gwinnett vs. (2) Freed-Hardeman, 1 p.m.
Game 6 – (4) Midway vs. Game 4 Winner, 5 p.m.
Wednesday, May 17
Game 7 – Game 5 Loser vs. Game 6 Winner, 11 a.m.
Game 8 – Game 5 Winner vs. Game 7 Winner, 3 p.m.
Thursday, May 18
Game 9 – Game 8 Winner vs. Game 8 Loser (if necessary), 11 a.m.