Pride split final doubleheader to earn series win at Baker

BALDWIN CITY, Kan. - Looking to start Heart of America Athletic Conference with a sweep, the Clarke University baseball team was one win away but ended up winning the series with a doubleheader split on Monday on a 5-4 extra innings win and a 8-3 loss in the finale.

In their win, CU got a strong start from Jake Fiorito as he went five innings allowing just two hits and an unearned run while striking out four Wildcat batters as he would exit the game at a 1-1 tie after five innings.

The offense picked up after the fifth inning as the Pride took a 2-1 lead on a Jordan Sadovia RBI single but the lead was short lived as BU would answer with two runs in the bottom of the sixth off of Isaac Rohde. Needing a run to stay alive in the game, Clarke would get two on a Victor Lara RBI single and a run on a double play to lead 4-3 heading into the bottom of seventh.

In that bottom of the seventh, Baker's John Raybourn delivered a solo home run to tie the game at 4-4 but the game would only need one extra inning as Maguire Fitzgerald would come through with a sacrifice fly to break the tie once again as Carsie Walker would pick up the save in the eighth with a scoreless inning while striking out two batters.

Sadovia, Bryce Hinton, and Bailin Markridge all had multi-hit games in the day's opener as Sadovia cracked three hits at the DH spot with Hinton and Markridge each adding a pair of singles.

The series finale was about the big inning as Clarke scored three runs in the third inning to jump out to a 3-1 lead but that was follow up by a run allowed in the bottom of the third and a big five-spot for the Wildcats in the fourth to take a 7-3 lead that they would eventually add on to in the fifth inning.

Bubba Thompson added a pair of hits in the loss as Lara, Hinton, Sadovia, Hayden Siebers, and Markridge all recorded a hit as well in the game. Johnny Blake started on the mound and struggled through 3.1 innings allowing six runs on six hits with four strikeouts as CU dropped their first game in the last 11.

Clarke baseball will return home and play their home openers this weekend when they host Graceland University at AJ Spiegel Park this Saturday and Sunday for doubleheaders scheduled for 1:00 p.m. CT starts on both days.