Pride battle but fall to Pioneers in extras
OZARK, Mo. - Playing their second game of the day after opening the Heart of America Athletic Conference Tournament with a win, the Clarke University baseball team dropped a 4-2 game in 10-innings to MidAmerica Nazarene University on Thursday night at the Ozark Mountain Sports Complex.
Both teams traded punches throughout the game as the Pioneers got an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second with a one-out double and a two-out RBI single from Christopher Lugo to strike early off of CU starting pitcher Dante Maietta.
The senior right hander settled in quite nicely after that second inning as he would continue to keep it a 1-0 game through the fifth when the Pride got on the board with their first run on a balk from MNU starter Luis Lopez to make it 1-1.
Each team's starting pitcher would continue to pitch deep into the game, both getting into the 8th inning as Lopez was removed before recording an out in the eight to finish with a line of two runs allowed, one earned, on six hits with two walks and eight strikeouts.
Maietta got two outs in the eighth but allowed a one-out sacrifice fly to give the Pioneers the lead at 2-1 at the time for his day to end with a line of 7.2 innings pitched, two earned runs allowed on five hits with four walks and nine strikeouts.
Clarke answered MidAmerica Nazarene run in the top of the eighth with one of their own in the bottom half by putting pressure on the defense when a slow ground ball to short off the bat of Darin Eales was thrown away attempting to turn a double play, allowing Cole Swartz to score on the play and making it first and third and eventually bases loaded with one out but Reece Helland would produce a pair of strikeouts to leave runners stranded.
That eighth inning was right in the middle of a three-straight frames for the Pride having either the go-ahead or winning run on third base with two outs but CU couldn't get that run across the plate in all three occasions.
In the extra frame, MNU got the leadoff runner on but Jacob Monday would get two outs in his second relief appearance of the day after entering in the eighth to keep it at 2-2 but the Pioneers got back-to-back RBI doubles to take a two-run lead and would close out the bottom of the 10th with a three-up, three-down frame.
Pride baseball will move to the loser's bracket of the Heart Tournament where they will face off against Baker University with a scheduled start time of 1:30 p.m. CT in Ozark, Mo. with the game's loser exiting the double-elimination tournament.