Wartburg takes two from Central in baseball
Central College
PELLA— A ninth-inning rally by Wartburg College gave the Knights a 5-3 win in the nightcap to complete the sweep against the Central College baseball team Saturday.
The Knights (23-7, 16-2 Iowa Conference) also won the opener over the Dutch (7-23, 5-15 IIAC) by a 6-3 margin.
Tied 2-2 in the bottom of the eighth, second baseman Noah Stochl (junior, New Hampton) scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly by shortstop Garrett Saunders (freshman, Bonaparte, Iowa, Van Buren HS), giving Central a 3-2 lead.
“Garrett doesn’t play like a freshman,” coach Matt Schirm said. “I always feel confident when he comes up in situations when we need something to happen. More often than not, he’s going to come through.”
Warburg followed with four hits to plate three runs in the ninth, solidifying the win.
Dakotah Wolken (senior, Dillon, Iowa, East Marshall HS) was solid on the mound for the Dutch, striking out five while walking only two batters.
“Dakotah pitched great,” Schirm said. “He really battled. For him to come back on three day’s rest and pitch like he did was pretty outstanding.
Mark Schroeder (senior, Chariton) was strong in relief of starting pitcher Blake Judkins (sophomore, Marshalltown) in game one, retiring all eight batters he faced in 2.2 innings of work. He also recorded the final out in the second game.
“He did a really good job,” Schirm said. “He’s been our top relief guy all year long. I feel very comfortable putting him in the game in tight situations and delivered again today.”
A double by third baseman Zach Brown (junior, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Xavier HS) in the second inning drove in two runs, but was one of just three hits for the Dutch in the opener.
Catcher Michael Reuter (junior, Monticello) was 2-for-4 in the second game, scoring the first run of the game in the bottom of the fifth.
“Michael’s a guy you can always count on,” Schirm said. “He generally puts together a good at-bat and he’s been a fairly consistent performer for us most of the year.”
Central’s scheduled to host St. Thomas (Minn.) in its final non-conference games of the year Monday at 1 p.m. at A.N. Kuyper Athletics Complex baseball field.
