Gameday Recap

WINONA, Minn. (5/02/07)--Concordia found out against St. Mary's on Wednesday that the saying "what goes around comes around" really is true. On Monday the Cobbers erased a deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning against Macalester to claim a one-run win. Against the Cardinals, the Cobbers had that same scenario play out not once, but twice as CC lost both games to SMU in the bottom of the seventh and both by the identical score of 6-5.

The two losses end the Cobbers' four-game winning streak. Concordia is now 11-21 and 7-11 in the MIAC with one doubleheader left to play. St. Mary's ends their season by reversing their streak of last-inning losses. Entering the game, the Cardinals had lost in the final inning on four occasions in the past three weeks. SMU finishes the 2007 season with a 10-21 overall mark and a 6-14 record in league play.

In the first game, the Cobbers entered the bottom of the seventh with a 5-4 lead. Sophomore pitcher Darrin Carlson, who entered the game with a 0.68 ERA in MIAC games, got the leadoff batter to fly out to right field. He then conceded a single and looked to be done with the game when the following batter hit a ground ball to the Cobber infield. Instead of a game-ending double play, it was an error that kept the Cardinals alive. The next batter doubled down the right field line to score both runners and end the game at 6-5.

Concordia outhit St. Mary's 10-9 in the opener. The top two hitters in the Cobber lineup combined for five of the team's 10 base hits. Jake Krause was 2-for-3 and scored a run and Ryan Emter went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Third baseman Matt Youngquist hit his second home run of the season and drove in two of the team's five runs. Cobber starting pitcher Scott Schumacher went the first five innings, allowing three earned runs and six hits. He walked four batters and struck out three.

In the finale, the Cobbers entered the bottom of the seventh with a 5-3 lead. Sophomore pitcher Matt Venturini, who entered the game with a 0.00 ERA in MIAC and had not allowed a single run, gave up back-to-back singles to start the seventh. He then got the next batter to hit the ball back to the mound and turned it into a 1-5 out at third base. The next two batters hit doubles to put an end to the Cobbers' surreal day in Winona.

The Cobbers came up with six hits in the second game and were outhit 11-6. Krause continued his hot streak at the plate. He went 2-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs. He has now hit safely in 11 of the team's past 12 games and has raised his season average to .288. Emter also hit safely in the nightcap. He went for 1-for-3 and has hit safely in six of the past seven games. He is now hitting .302 for the year.

Senior Kevin Engebretson made the start and lasted 2.1 innings. He gave up three runs, none of which were earned, and four hits. Freshman Chris Fellows held the lead by pitching 1.2 innings of scoreless relief.

Concordia will finish off the 2007 on Saturday, May 5 when they play at Hamline at 1 p.m.