The Carthage College baseball team (15-3, 6-1 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) split a Friday, April 3 doubleheader with CCIW-opponent and No. 24 Augustana College (Ill., 18-5, 5-2 CCIW) at Swanson Stadium/Brunner Field in Moline, Ill. The Red Men won the first game, 5-4, but fell in the nightcap by a 7-3 margin. The two teams conclude the three-game set with a Saturday, April 4 single game, beginning at Noon.
In the opener, Augustana took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on an RBI-double by Brandon Jasper. The Vikings made it a 3-0 contest in the fourth when two runs scored on an error by Red Men third baseman Taylor Meseberg. Carthage got on the scoreboard in the fifth on an RBI-double by Graham Wick. Meanwhile, Augustana pitcher Seth Davis went into the sixth having allowed eight hits but with nine strikeouts. Carthage loaded the bases off Smith in the sixth, and Drew Bailey drove in a run with an infield grounder. Reed Hero followed with a two-run single, and the Red Men led, 4-3. An RBI-single by Matt Rave in the ninth put Carthage up, 5-3. The Vikings scored a run in the ninth to make it a 5-4 game, and that closed out the scoring.
Carthage pitcher Josh Daniels (Sr., Elk Grove, Ill., 3-0) pitched well, allowing four runs, three earned, on eight hits, a walk and seven strikeouts over nine innings. Seth Davis (5-1) took the loss. Davis gave up 12 hits and a walk, while striking out 15 batters. Nick Schmdlkofer (Sr., Wind Lake, Wis./Muskego) went three-for-five with two runs scored.
Augustana took a 2-0 lead in the first inning of the nightcap on an RBI-single by Danny Fifer and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Kyle Lenihan. The Vikings made it a 5-0 game in the fourth with a three-run inning, two of those on an RBI-single by John Swiderski. Carthage cut the lead to 5-2 in the fifth on an RBI-triple by Nick Schmidlkofer. Anthony Fortunato singled in a run in the ninth to close out the scoring at 7-3.
Kyle McGinley (5-2) was the winning pitcher for Vikings, as he limited the Red Men to two runs, one earned, on six hits, three walks and a strikeout. Carthage committed five errors in the second game. Jared Helmich (Jr., Lake Villa, Ill./Fox Lake-Grant Community) went two-for-four with two runs scored.
"You had two big-gun pitchers going at it in the first game," said Carthage coach Augie Schmidt IV, "and we managed to scrounge up enough runs to win it. Josh Daniels did a great pitching job and went nine inning for us. It was a heck of a win. The second game got away from us. We pitched well, but we didn't play well enough defensively. It was two good teams going at it today, and it was fun. Augustana is a very good team, and we'll go back at it again tomorrow."