CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — The Coe College baseball team split a doubleheader with Luther College on Saturday afternoon at Bill Quinby Field, falling 5-4 in game one before claiming game two 4-3 in ten innings. The Kohawks and Norse each totaled eight hits in game one, but three defensive miscues from the hosts and timely hitting for Luther were enough for the one-run victory. Coe got RBI from
Jack Casey, Jake Mitchell, Luke Schieltz, and
Louis Smelcer, and a solid starting outing from
Xander Cloudy, but the Norse rode the back of their undefeated ace Josh Stratton for the win. Coe fell behind in the top of the first in game two, spotting Luther a 2-0 lead. The Kohawks got one back in the bottom of the inning, but went quiet until the sixth inning.
Austin Gomez made it 3-2 in the frame with an infield single RBI before Luther escaped further damage, stranding the bases loaded. Coe left the dramatics until the ninth, getting a leadoff runner on an error before a sac bunt set the stage for a game-tying single from Mitchell. Coe left the bases loaded again in the ninth, but took full advantage of another chance in the 10th as
Brent Yonkovic started the inning with a double and moved to third on a passed ball.
Jack McMann delivered the game-winning run two batters later, plating Yonkovic with a sacrifice fly to right.
GAME ONE
LUTHER 5 - COE 4
- Luther jumped ahead in the third inning, scoring on a potential double-play ball that the Kohawk infielders failed to turn. Coe's offense picked the run back up in the bottom of the inning, using a one-out walk from Mitchell and a run-scoring double from Schieltz to level the game. The teams again traded runs in the fifth, with the Norse getting a two-out single ahead of a run-scoring single from Casey that ended with controversy on a play at the plate where Schieltz collided with the catcher. Luther pulled ahead once again in the seventh, scoring twice in the frame with a two-run single after the first two hitters reached. Coe did manage to pull one back in its half, putting runners on second and third before a productive groundout from Smelcer made it 4-3. Luther scored the game's final run in the eighth, getting a leadoff homer to pad the lead at 5-3. The run proved crucial as the Kohawks got one back in the bottom of the ninth on a two-out double from Mitchell, but a game-ending strikeout gave Luther the opener.
GAME TWO
COE 4 - LUTHER 3 - 10 INNINGS
- The Norse took an early lead again in game two, plating runs in back-to-back at-bats with a fielder's choice and a sacrifice bunt. Coe got two hits in the bottom of the inning and pushed one across, halving the deficit as Mitchell scampered home on a passed ball. Luther regained a two-run lead in the second, using a two-out homer to make it 3-1. Coe's offense finally got one back in the sixth as Jon Wille, Eli Elsbecker, and Ryan Brosius loaded the bases. An infield single from Gomez made it 3-2, but Coe failed to cash in further as Luther left them loaded with a groundout. The Kohawk offense took their chance in the ninth as Sam Wright reached on an error to start the frame. Kael Kurtz pinch ran and moved to second on a sacrifice from Casey before trotting to third on a passed ball. Mitchell delivered the game-tying hit in the same at-bat, driving home Kurtz for 3-3 before Luther pitched its way out of further trouble. Brady Alexander worked around two runners in the 10th as the first two hitters reached before back-to-back fly outs and a strikeout ended the chance. Yonkovic put immediate pressure on Luther with a leadoff double in the bottom of the inning and later came around on McMann's sacrifice fly as Coe salvaged a split for the day.
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