MINNETONKA, Minn. - The Martin Luther College baseball team opened its season with a pair of losses against Crown College by the scores of 4-3 and 10-0 at Veteran's Field on Thursday.
Game 1The Knights were unable to take advantage of several late opportunities in a 4-3 season-opening loss in game one.
Crown jumped on top of MLC starting pitcher
Jonathan Kock for three runs in the first inning, but MLC was able to cut the deficit to 3-2 with one run in both the second and third innings.
Jacob Schultz put the Knights on the board in the second with an RBI-groundout to score
Karl Kuschel. Kock drove in the second run on a single that scored Tom Keller in the third inning.
The Storm scored once more off reliever
James Hemmelman in the fourth inning, and then held on the rest of the way for the win. MLC cut the deficit to one with a
Jared Lindemann RBI single in the sixth, but left the tying run on second base in the seventh inning.
Kock fell to 0-1 on the season in defeat after allowing three runs on four hits and two walks in 3.0 innings. He also struck out three. Hemmelman pitched the final three innings and allowed one run on three hits.
Game 2Crown scored at least one run in five of their six times at bat in a 10-0 game two win over the Knights.
The Storm took a 1-0 lead in the first inning thanks to an error in the outfield, and built a 4-0 lead heading into the fifth inning.
In that fifth inning, Crown broke the game open with five runs on six hits and two hit batters against MLC relievers
Travis Kretsch and
John Marquardt.
The Knights managed only two hits in the game, with
Jason Lindemann and Schultz each registering one apiece.
Dillon Solomon started the game for MLC and took the loss, allowing three runs (two earned) on two hits and two walks while striking out four.
MLC fell to 0-2 on the season with the two defeats, while Crown opened the season 2-0 with the two wins.
The Knights will return to action on Friday, March 18, when they play Knox College in the first games of their trip to Winter Haven, Fla. That doubleheader is scheduled to start at 12 p.m. local time.
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