Baseball loses late game two lead, settles for split with Wisconsin Lutheran

MEQUON, Wis. – With the Wisconsin Lutheran College offense struggling it appeared the Concordia University Wisconsin Baseball team was well on its way to a doubleheader sweep over the Warriors Sunday afternoon at Kapco Park. A four-run seventh inning in the second game would change things, forcing the Falcons to settle for a split. CUW won the opener 9-2 before dropping game two, 4-3.

The opening game saw the Falcons erase an early 2-0 deficit with a six-run third inning. Senior Brandon Seifert (Germantown, Wis.) recorded a two-RBI single, while Kyle Hegeman and Matt Schubert added RBI singles in the frame, giving CUW a 6-2 lead.

The Falcons would add one in the fourth and two more in the seventh on a two-RBI double from Schubert (West Bend, Wis.) to complete the 9-2 game. Just five of the Falcons nine runs were earned as Wisconsin Lutheran struggled defensively with four errors in the opener.

Five runs would have been more than enough for sophomore starting pitcher Andrew Heideman (Bakersfield, Calif.) as he zoned in after a two-run second. Heideman went the distance for the second time this season, scattering eight hits and striking out five in his third win of the year. The right-hander issued just one walk, while needing 110 pitches to finish off the Warriors.

Schubert paced the Falcons with two hits and three RBI in the opener. Freshman Michael Szeszol (Lake Bluff, Ill.) scored a pair of runs from the leadoff spot, while Seifert finished with two RBI.

In game two the Falcons jumped out to a lead in the second, plating three runs, two coming off another two-RBI double from Schubert. It appeared that would be all the run support freshman Carter Buuck (Hillsboro, Ore.) would need as he allowed just one hit through his first six innings of work.

In the seventh inning some control issues led to the Warriors loading the bases with nobody out. Korben Biersack, the WLC catcher, then delivered a big two-RBI double followed by a sac fly from Matt Wick to tie the score at 3-3. Biersack would later score on a wild pitch, giving the Warriors a 4-3 lead.

Buuck still went the distance in game two, striking out seven and allowing just three hits. He did walk five and hit one batter while throwing 112 pitches, 71 for strikes. His counterpart, Brock Vredeveld, tossed 150 pitches in his complete-game victory. Vredeveld allowed three runs, two earned and punched out two, while walking four.

Hegeman (New Berlin, Wis.) had the lone multi-hit effort of game two for the Falcons, who had runners at second and third in the bottom of the ninth inning. He, Seifert and sophomore Bryan Thomas (Lowell, Ind.) scored the runs for the Falcons. Szeszol added a pair of stolen bases for CUW in the second contest.

Josiah Boucher recorded two of the Warriors three hits in their game two win. Biersack had the other hit, finishing 1-for-4 at the plate.

The Falcons will be back in action tomorrow in a NACC doubleheader at Edgewood. The twinbill was supposed to be played yesterday, but anticipated inclement weather forced the games to Monday. First pitch from Stampfl Field in Verona, Wis. is scheduled for 3 p.m.