Hefel shines again as Pride split series at Park
PARKVILLE, Mo. - Another series in the Heart of America Athletic Conference that produced similar results as the week prior, the Clarke University baseball team earned a split against Park University after splitting their Friday doubleheader games with a 12-2 loss and a 5-1 win.
Sophomore pitcher Ethan Hefel picked up his second-straight win with his second-straight complete game in the series finale as he allowed one earned run on four hits with three strikeouts and only walking one batter on the day. Friday's start saw the right-hander from Galena, Ill. have career-best marks with the four hits and one run allowed as he allowed three runs in his prior outings.
The series finale was also the fourth time in as many games where the Pirates started with the lead as they scored their lone run in the top of the second with a squeez bunt but the Pride would answer with a Brendan O'Connor RBI single in the bottom of the third to tie the game up before a big fifth inning to take the lead.
Big swings in that fifth inning came from Thomas Brannon and Tommy Peterson as Brannon roped a triple with the bases loaded to clear the bases and make it a 4-1 CU lead before Tommy Peterson singled home Brannon's courtesy runner, Cole Swartz, to extend that lead to its eventual final score of 5-1.
In game three of the series, the day's opening game, a 10-run top of the first powered Park to their eventual 12-2 win as they were able to bring nine across home plate before Clarke could record an out in the inning.
Eating quality innings out of the bullpen for the Pride was Joey Clemann as he was able to pitch four scoreless innings of relief to keep PU at 12 runs but the Pride offense couldn't generate any rallies that they have been accustomed to at times this season.
Unmentioned earlier but finishing the day with solid offensive performances overall were both Andrew Swartz and Dean Ormonde as the duo finished with three hits each with Ormonde scoring three runs over the pair of games and Swartz going 2-for-3 with two runs scored out of the eight-hole in the series finale win.
Clarke baseball will look to return home for what would have been their third-straight Heart series at A.J. Spiegel Park when they host William Penn University for a pair of doubleheaders scheduled for Mar. 29-30.