Wittenberg Splits Pair With Concordia

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - The Wittenberg Tigers improved to 3-1 with a doubleheader split against Concordia University (Wis.). In games played at Port Charlotte, Fla., during Wittenberg's annual Spring Break trip, the Tigers lost the first game 12-9 and came back to win the nightcap 9-6.

In the first game, senior righthander Ryan Goldschmidt was his own worst enemy, allowing eight hits, seven bases on balls and two hit batsmen. He allowed 11 runs, 10 of them earned, in six innings before giving way to senior Wayne Massie, who allowed one run on two hits and two walks in the seventh.

Wittenberg got off to a good start, pushing two runs across the plate in each of the first two innings. In the first inning, junior K.R. Schlievert drove in one run with a double and senior Matt Foster added a suicide squeeze bunt for the second RBI, and in the second inning, freshman Jon Fox singled home two runs. Concordia responded with three runs in the third and another in the fourth, countered by a pair of Wittenberg tallies in the fourth. Concordia broke the game open with one run in the fourth inning, a six-run outburst in the fifth inning and two insurance runs in the seventh.

The Tigers could only respond with three runs in the bottom of the seventh, but it wasn't enough. Fox finished with three hits and two runs batted in, and Schlievert, Foster and junior Brian Hampp also had multi-hit games.

The second game was the same story without the big innings for Concordia, leading to a much more favorable result from a Wittenberg perspective. Junior Jason Holmberg was the starter and winning pitcher as he allowed six runs, three earned, in five innings. He struggled with his control like Goldschmidt, allowing five walks and six base hits, but he stayed away from the big inning and that worked in his favor. Junior Tyler Jacobs made his first appearance in the Red & White after transferring to Wittenberg last year, and he tossed two scoreless innings in relief to pick up the save.

Wittenberg never trailed in this one, scoring one in the top of the first inning, three in the second, two in the fourth and three more to clinch it in the sixth. The Tigers collected 12 hits to seven for Concordia, and the second straight big offensive output helped Wittenberg overcome three errors.

Five Wittenberg players finished with two hits in the game: Fox and Schlievert at the top of the lineup, Hampp and junior catcher Brad Koopman in the middle and the No. 9 hitter, freshman Tyler Curlis. Hampp and Fox each finished with two runs batted in and Fox and Curlis were the only Wittenberg players to score more than one run.