CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The Coe College baseball team stayed unbeaten in the American Rivers Conference tournament on Saturday afternoon, taking down two-seeded Buena Vista 4-3 to advance to Saturday's Championship game. The Kohawks rode the arm of
Ethan O'Donnell who pitched a gem, going 7.2 innings while allowing just three earned runs. The North Liberty native got some early run support and cruised through the opening seven innings before the Beavers struck in the eighth.
Ryan Thoreson opened Coe's account in the second inning with a homer to right field before a pair of RBI from
Jack Allison and
Creighton Kreshel in the fourth.
Tyce Johnson gave Coe a four-run lead with the eventual game-winning hit, launching a solo shot in the sixth. BVU managed to get three runs in the top of the eighth but
Xander Cloudy shut the door on the Beavers, recording the final out in the eighth before earning the save in the ninth.
COE 4 - BUENA VISTA 3
Game Facts
- Coe had an early scoring chance in the first with leadoff hits from Mitchell Eckardt and Jon Wille but Buena Vista pitched its way out of the jam. Thoreson led off the second inning with a solo shot, sneaking his third homer of the year over the right-field fence to make it 1-0. Thoreson started Coe's fourth-inning rally with one out, doubling down the left-field line before moving to third on a wild pitch. Allison doubled the Kohawk lead with a productive out, grounding out to second for a 2-0 advantage. Kreshel came through clutch later in the frame with two down, delivering a double to the left-center gap to push home Johnson. Johnson delivered Coe's second homer of the game and his first of the year in the bottom of the seventh, giving the Kohawks a 4-0 lead with a shot to right. O'Donnell allowed one run early in the top of the eighth but quickly lessened the threat with a crucial double play ball. Buena Vista still managed to capitalize, chasing Coe's starter with a two-run two-out bomb to close within one of the lead. Cloudy relieved O'Donnell and did solid work, recording the final out of the eighth before working around a leadoff single in the ninth for his first save of the season.
Up Next: Coe returns to the diamond tomorrow, needing one win to clinch the American Rivers Conference postseason title. The Kohawks will face the winner of Saturday's first game between #2 Buena Vista and #3 Luther at 2 PM at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
#KohawkNation #TalonsOut
Visit https://kohawkathletics.com/ for complete coverage of Coe College Athletics
Like Coe College Athletics on Facebook
Follow @CoeAthletics on Twitter
Follow @CoeAthletics on Instagram
Coe Athletics Mobile App - Android | iPhone
