Baseball splits NACC opening doubleheader at Aurora

MONTGOMERY, Ill. – The Concordia University Wisconsin Baseball team opened Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference play Sunday afternoon in a twinbill against Aurora. The Falcons and Spartans split the doubleheader, with CUW taking game one, 8-3 before dropping the nightcap, 9-6. The games were also the first for the Falcons since March 20.

THE BASICS
- Final Scores: Game 1 CUW 8, Aurora 3; Game 2 Aurora 9, CUW 6
- Location: Stuart Sportsplex – Montgomery, Ill.
- Records: CUW 6-8, 1-1 NACC; Aurora 10-10, 1-1 NACC

GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS
- The Falcons used a five-run seventh inning, breaking open a 2-2 tie, to help win game one 8-3. In the five-run frame sophomore Dan Ranieri (Loves, Park, Ill.) belted a two-run double, while junior Mitchell Dubnicka (Hartland, Wis.) added an RBI single.

- CUW was tied 2-2 before the five-run seventh thanks to a two-run home run from junior Isaac Tewes (Chaska, Minn.) in the fourth inning. The Falcons were down 2-0 at that point as Aurora scored twice in the bottom of the second.

- Senior Andrew Mueller (Horicon, Wis.) pitched well for the Falcons in picking up his third win of the season. Mueller tossed 6.1 innings, scattering seven hits and striking out five. He gave up just two runs.

- Senior Josh Ruppel (Belgium, Wis.) came on in relief of Mueller and pitched 2.2 innings, surrendering one run in the ninth. Of Ruppel's eight outs he recorded, four came via strikeouts.

- Sophomore Nathan Thyssen (Appleton, Wis.) paced the Falcons with three hits, while Tewes drove in three. Ranieri and sophomore Michael Szeszol (Lake Bluff, Ill.) each added two hits, while those two, Thyssen and sophomore Peter Scott (Dayton, Nev.) all doubled.

GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS
- The Falcons fell behind 4-0 after three innings in game two, but scored three in the top of the fourth, making the score 4-3. Junior Matt Schubert (West Bend, Wis.) drove in two in the fourth, while Thyssen added a RBI single.

- Aurora would respond, plating five runs in the bottom of the fourth, including a grand slam by Dillon Popovich.

- CUW would fight back with two runs in the top of the fifth and one more in the sixth but that would be all the scoring in the nightcap, resulting in the 9-6 final.

- Senior Nate Van Ells (Greendale, Wis.) and sophomore Kyle Hilliard (Oak Forest, Ill.) each collected three hits to pace the Falcons. Both players doubled, while Thyssen added two hits.

- Senior Tyler Gross (Wauwatosa, Wis.) took the loss, pitching just 2.1 innings. Four pitchers threw for the Falcons in game two, including sophomores Scott Plachinski (South Milwaukee, Wis.) and Eric Dubek (Lockport, Ill.). The sophomore duo combined for 4.1 innings of scoreless relief, Dubek pitching the final three innings.

- Popovich had three hits, including a double and a home run, and drove in five runs to pace Aurora.

UP NEXT
- The Falcons will host Wisconsin Lutheran College in a NACC twinbill tomorrow at Kapco Park. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.