Warriors Respond in Game Two, Split with No. 21 Concordia

FREMONT, Neb. – Midland University hosted Concordia University for a Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) doubleheader on Friday afternoon. The Warriors suffered a tough 6-1 loss in game one but bounced back in game two with a home run to secure a 2-1 victory, splitting the day's matchups.

GAME ONE: Concordia 6, Midland 1

After four scoreless innings from both teams, Concordia broke through in the top of the fifth. The Bulldogs drew a walk, advanced to second and third on a groundout and a flyout, and then loaded the bases following an intentional walk and another free pass. A bases-loaded walk pushed across the first run of the game, giving Concordia a 1-0 lead.

The Bulldogs carried their momentum into the sixth inning, drawing back-to-back walks before a single loaded the bases. Another single and a double brought in three runs, followed by a sacrifice fly and an additional double that tacked on two more. Concordia extended its lead to 6-0.

Midland finally got on the board in the bottom of the sixth when Eimir Perez led off with a double, and Joshua Hardamon followed with an RBI double to drive him in.

Concordia's pitching held firm in the seventh, securing the Bulldogs' 6-1 win in game one.

Statistical Standouts

• Joshua Hardamon: 1-for-3, RBI, 2B
• Eimir Perez: 1-for-4, 2B, R

GAME TWO: Midland 2, Concordia 1

Concordia struck early in game two, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning with a double followed by a single.

After two scoreless innings, the Warriors responded in the fourth. Hardamon roped a double, and Hadyn Crawford followed with a single to bring him home, tying the game at 1-1.

The game remained deadlocked until the bottom of the seventh, when Crawford delivered a solo home run to left field, giving Midland a 2-1 lead.

The Warriors' pitching took care of the rest, shutting down the Bulldogs in the final two innings to secure the victory.

Zachary Vincent earned the win, throwing 109 pitches over seven innings. He struck out seven while allowing just three hits, three walks, and one run. Brandon Creps picked up the save with two shutout innings, striking out one and allowing no hits or walks.

Statistical Standouts

• Joshua Hardamon: 1-for-3, 2B, R
• Hadyn Crawford: 2-for-3, 2 RBI, HR, R
• Zachary Vincent: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K
• Brandon Creps: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

"On the mound, Zach and Creps did a great job of constantly attacking hitters and not giving up anything for free," commented head coach Shea Bennett. "With the weather conditions, we knew it was going to be a close ball game and runs were going to be hard to come by. Crawford did a great job of stepping up with two big hits to give us just enough to pull off a good win against a ranked conference opponent."

Midland (4-16) will host a nonconference game against Bellevue (10-9) on Tuesday, March 18. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Moller Field in Fremont, Nebraska.