Grand View scores two early to beat Pride in Heart Tournament second round

OZARK, Mo. - Opening off the Heart of America Athletic Conference Tournament's action for the second-straight day, the Clarke University baseball team fell in a pitchers' duel 2-1 to Grand View University on Saturday morning.

The loss moves the Pride into the loser's bracket of the tournament as they will play MidAmerica Nazarene later today for a 5:00 p.m. CT in an elimination game for this double-elimination bracket format.

Both starting pitchers in the CU vs. GVU game shined as Clarke's Johnny Blake went eight inning for a complete game six-hitter while allowing two earned runs and striking out six Viking batters. Grand View's Logan Smith answered the bell in his second head-to-head matchup against Blake in a week as Smith went seven innings, allowing one earned run on seven hits without walking a batter either while striking out four.

Devin Doyle entered in relief for Grand View as he allowed a hit and a walk but struck out three batters, including Blake to end the game and pick up his fifth save of the season.

The Vikings scored their only runs of the game in the bottom of the first as they led off with a hit batter, a single to right field advancing the leadoff runner to third, a sacrifice fly to score their first run, then an RBI single to go up 2-0.

Clarke got their run in the third inning after a leadoff double by Blake then a bunt single from Maguire Fitzgerald made it first and third with no outs. Two batters later, Brendan O'Connor singled to right field to score Andrew Swartz, who was running for Blake, to make it 2-1 before zeros were put up for the remainder of the six innings.

The Pride will get back out to the field to take on the Pioneers at 5:00 as MNU won the regular season series against CU three games to one back on the first conference weekend in March.