Two-Out Toughness

MOORHEAD, Minn. (4/17/17)--- A game that lasted 3 hours and 25 minutes, witnessed 11 pitching changes, 19 runs, 30 hits and numerous coaching timeouts came down to a solow-rolling, walkoff infield single in the bottom of the ninth inning.  

Nate Sillerud was able to beat out a slow ground ball to shortstop which scored Alec Sames from third base to give Concordia a 10-9 victory over Jamestown.

It was the third straight game that the Cobbers have won on a walkoff hit with two outs in the final inning. Concordia beat Augsburg twice on walkoff hits on Saturday and added the trifecta on Monday against a quality Jamestown team.

The win is also the seventh straight for the Cobbers who move their overall record to a season-best six games above the .500 mark. CC is now 17-11 on the year. Jamestown drops their third straight game and is now 30-15 for the season.

Both teams used the non-conference game to get their little-used pitchers some work against good hitters. Concordia went through eight different pitchers while the Jimmies sent five players to the hill.

Jamestown struck first with a five-run third inning before Concordia rallied for two in the bottom of the frame. The big inning for the Cobbers came in the sixth after they trailed 6-2. CC scored seven times to take a 9-6 lead. All seven runs came after there were two outs in the inning.

The Jimmies would tie the game in their very next at-bat when they scored three times on three hits.

The Cobbers then won the game in the ninth when Sames reached on an infield single to third base with one out. Brett Swanson then singled up the middle to advance Sames to second. Nate Hoeft pushed Sames up to third after reaching on a fielder's choice and then Sillerud legged out the game-winning infield hit.

Both teams had 15 hits in the game. Concordia had four players with two hits each. Sophomore leadoff hitter Grant Toivonen went 2-for-4. Cody Rahman was 2-for-4 and drove in three runs. Austin Ver Steeg and Swanson both were 2-for-2 as they combined to get four hits from the No.8 spot in the batting order.

The Cobber pitching trio of Alex Erickson, Gunnar Linstaedt and Turner Storm combined to keep Jamestown off the board for the final 2.2 innings of play. Storm was credited with his first collegiate win as he pitched a scoreless ninth inning.

Freshman Tanner McBain made his first collegiate start for Concordia and went the first 2.2 innings. He didn't allow a run and gave up only one hit in the first two innings but then stumbled in the third.

TWO-OUT TOUGHNESS: Concordia scored nine of its 10 runs with two outs in an inning. One of the two runs in the third was scored with a pair of outs and then the final eight runs were scored with two outs. The Cobbers hit .461 (6-for-13) with two outs against the Jimmes. CC was also 7-for-16 (.437) with runners in scoring position.

TWO-OUT TOUGHNESS 2: Concordia has been very good with two outs in its last three games. The Cobbers are hitting .444 with two-outs in that stretch. CC is also batting .381 with runners in scoring position in the last three games.  

SOLID 17: Senior Joe Hallock extended his on-base streak to 17 straight games. Hallock got out his first three times at the plate but then legged out an infield single to second base in the sixth. He is now hitting .340 on the season which is one point behind Grant Toivonen who leads the team with a .341 mark.

FINE 15: Hallock has company with his long on-base streak. Fellow senior Cody Rahman has now reached base safely in 15 straight games. He went 2-for-4 on Monday and has also hit safely in three straight games. He also upped his season batting average to .262.

WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will put its seven-game win streak on the line when they host Carleton on Wednesday, Apr. 19 at 2:30 p.m. The Knights are 8-16 on the year but 1-7 in MIAC play. They were swept at league-leading Bethel on Monday.

CONCORDIA vs. JAMESTOWN POSTGAME INTERVIEW: