SEWARD, Neb. – Each contest of the four-game set between the Concordia University Baseball team and Northwestern featured plenty of late-inning drama. As part of Friday (March 25)’s doubleheader, the Bulldogs celebrated a game one win, 7-5, thanks to Jesse Garcia’s walk-off, two-run homer. Then in game two, the Red Raiders mounted a stunning comeback from eight runs down and won, 14-13, in a war of attrition. It took nearly seven hours to play the two contests on a blustery day at Plum Creek Park.
Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s squad began the series with two victories by identical 4-3 final scores on Thursday. Concordia now stands at 7-1 within conference play (18-7-1 overall) with all eight GPAC games having been played at home.
Said Dupic, “The last one got away from us. It’s obviously disappointing because we were in a really good position to win that game. In the big picture, it’s good to win the series, especially when you’re playing good baseball teams, and I think Northwestern is a good baseball team. There’s a little bit of a bad taste in our mouth not being able to finish the deal – not making enough pitches and plays to finish that ballgame. I hope it’s an opportunity for our team to learn. Hopefully we can stay on track big picture and move forward.”
The Bulldogs also relinquished a 5-1 lead in Friday’s first game, but Garcia made that easy to forget when he connected on a rocket that left the yard in the bottom of the seventh. Concordia had also walked off a winner late on Thursday night via Alec Blakestad’s game-winning RBI single. As a follow up, Blakestad produced a two-run single in the fourth inning of this series’ third game. Also in Friday’s win, Keaton Candor went 2-for-4 with a run and Ben Berg belted his fourth homer of the season.
On the mound, Christian Gutierrez gave Concordia a strong start in the third game of the series. He worked quickly through six innings before running into trouble in the seventh. Gutierrez allowed four runs on six hits and did not walk a batter while striking out seven. In relief, Jacob Lycan wound up with the win thanks to Garcia’s blast.
In the capper, the Bulldogs appeared to be cruising to a four-game sweep when they put up six runs in the fifth and four in the fourth. Concordia owned a 12-4 lead heading into the eighth inning. The top of the eighth was a nightmare for the Bulldogs. Northwestern scored nine runs on nine hits and an error. The Red Raider bench went wild when Mo Watson struck for a two-run, go-ahead homer that put the Red Raiders in front, 13-12.
After Concordia tied it in the bottom of the eighth, Northwestern pushed across what proved to be the game winner when Isaac Thurm drew a bases-loaded walk. The Bulldogs were held off the scoreboard in the bottom of the ninth despite Ben Berg’s leadoff walk. Somehow, the Red Raiders (11-13, 3-5 GPAC) found a way to win a game in which their pitchers issued 13 free passes.
Four Concordia players notched two hits apiece in the series finale: Jay Adams (2-for-6), Blakestad (2-for-5), Garcia (2-for-4) and Joey Grabanski (2-for-2). Garcia and Ty Nekoliczak knocked in three runs each and Blakestad produced two RBIs. Between the two sides, a combined 40 players were used in the series finale. Caden Johnson started on the mound for the Bulldogs and went 4.1 innings.
There’s no doubt about the potency of Concordia’s offensive lineup, but some other areas need shoring up for the 2022 squad to reach its full potential. Said Dupic, “When the ball’s on the ground we have to get more outs … Mistakes happen. That’s part of the game. You have to respond and come back, but you can’t have so many of them. I’m proud of our hitters for fighting back and really battling offensively and putting good, competitive at-bats together.”
The Bulldogs will have more than a week to prepare for next weekend (April 2-3)’s four-game series with Midland (16-3, 3-1 GPAC). The two sides will be in Fremont on the first day before shifting to Seward for the second day of action. Doubleheaders will get started at 1 p.m. CT on both days.