Central College athletics

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May 8, 2008

Central outlasts Simpson 11-9 after beating Coe 5-0

CEDAR RAPIDS—The Central College baseball team utilized nearly all of its pitchers Thursday as the Dutch beat Simpson College 11-9 in a rollercoaster Iowa Conference tournament game after Central had defeated Coe College 5-0 earlier in the afternoon.

In the nightcap that saw 12 pitchers between the two squads, four lead changes and three ties, No. 6-seeded Central (22-19) finally broke away from No. 2-seeded Simpson (25-15) in the ninth inning when the Dutch plated two runs to take an 11-9 advantage. Central will take on top-seeded Wartburg College Friday at 4 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium in the double-elimination tourney. Wartburg was a 5-2 winner over Loras College Thursday night. The tournament winner receives an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III championship field.

“We did a good job of answering Simpson,” said coach Adam Stevens. “It was a back and forth battle that could have gone either way.”

The Dutch had a slew of big performances at the plate in the nightcap. Junior left fielder Derek Knutson (Richland, Wash., Yorkville, Ill. HS) led the attack, going 2-for-2 with three runs scored and an RBI triple.

“In the cleanup spot, we want our guys to put the ball in play and Derek did a great job of that,” said Stevens. “When we had runners in scoring position, he did a great job all day of getting them in.”

Sophomore catcher Blake Smith (Polk City, North Polk HS) was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and scored what proved to be the decisive run in the ninth. Anthony Bazant (sophomore, centerfielder, Omaha, Neb., Ralston HS) went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and two RBIs.

Stevens also raved about the all-around play of freshman right fielder Jarred Lackey (Somerton, Ariz., Cibola HS) who only recently has been in the starting lineup. Lackey went 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

“(Jarred) had some big hits and made some nice defensive plays,” said Stevens. “He has been such a sparkplug for us and plays 100 percent all the time. He is a big part of our recent success.”

Central sprinted to a 3-0 lead in the first inning off an RBI single from Bazant and a double from Smith that scored two. The lead was short lived as Simpson stormed back in the second to take a 4-3 advantage. Both teams scored a run in the third inning and Central went up 6-5 following Knutson’s triple and a run-scoring single from Smith in the fifth. Simpson leveled the contest in the bottom of the inning and tallied two in the sixth to lead 8-6. True to the game’s pattern, Central came right back in the seventh as Lackey had a two-run double and sophomore third baseman Ben Tressel (Dubuque, Hempstead HS) had an RBI groundout as Central went up 9-8. Simpson again leveled the score in the eighth with a run before the Dutch sealed the contest with two in the ninth.

Adam Squires Central displayed its pitching depth as seven hurlers took the mound. Freshman Dayton Glasgow (Burlington) started and went three innings and gave up one earned run on seven hits while striking out two and walking one. Caleb Rangel (freshman, Rock Island, Ill., Alleman HS) got the win to go 1-0 after coming in in the seventh and pitching 1.2 innings. He gave up one earned run on two hits, struck out a pair and walked one. Junior Adam Squires (Center Point, Center Point-Urbana HS) pitched the ninth and recorded his fifth save.

“We threw a lot of pitchers and for the most part everybody did a good job,” said Stevens. “Our guys kept us in the game.”

Mahan’s gem leads Dutch past Coe in opener--Brett Mahan (senior, West Des Moines, Valley HS) tossed a five-hit shutout to push Central College past Coe College 5-0 Thursday in the opening round of the Iowa Conference baseball tournament.

“Brett threw as well as ever,” said Stevens. “He had all of his pitches going. The first game was a big one and Brett did a great job.”

Tressel delivered a run-scoring double and Knutson followed with a two-run double in a three-run eighth inning for the Dutch.

Mahan (7-3) walked three and struck out six in going the distance for Central. Coe (21-19) had swept three games from Central at Pella April 26-27.

Thursday’s results
Game 1 – #5 Loras def. #4 Luther, 6-3
Game 2 – #6 Central def. #3 Coe, 5-0
Game 3 – #6 Central def. #2 Simpson, 11-9
Game 4 – #1 Wartburg def. #5 Loras, 5-2

Updated records
#1 Wartburg – 24-12
#2 Simpson – 25-15
#3 Coe – 21-19
#4 Luther – 17-17
#5 Loras – 19-22
#6 Central – 22-19

Friday’s schedule
Game 5 – #3 Coe vs. #4 Luther, 10 a.m. (loser eliminated)
Game 6 – #2 Simpson vs. Game 4 loser, 1 p.m. (loser eliminated)
Game 7 – #6 Central vs. #1 Wartburg, 4 p.m.
Game 8 – Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 7 p.m.

Saturday’s schedule
Game 9 – Game 7 loser vs. Game 8 winner, 10 a.m.
Game 10 – Game 7 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 11 – Game 10 winner vs. Game 10 loser, 4 p.m. (if necessary)

Central College Baseball