Sweep Finishes Off Florida Fun

AUBURNDALE, Fla. (3/06/18)---Concordia used a pair of complete-game pitching performances to sweep its final doubleheader in Florida.

The Cobbers got a four-hit shutout performance from Austin Ver Steeg in the opener against Waynesburg (Pa.) and then Ty Syverson backed that up with a six-hit outing in the second games as the Cobbers won 4-0 and 6-3 to complete their annual spring break trip.

Concordia finishes their Florida trip by winning their last three games and four of their last five. CC is now 5-6 on the year. Waynesburg, who had won their first four games in Florida, falls to 4-2 for the year.

Ver Steeg continued his dominance on the mound in Florida by striking out seven in seven innings in the first game of the day. He only gave up four hits and didn't allow a runner to reach second base until he gave up a two-out double in the seventh inning but then stranded that runner on second with an infield pop out on the very next batter.

The Cobbers scored single runs in the third and fifth innings and then added a pair in the top of the seventh to finish off the 4-0 score line.

Concordia had six hits in the game and two came off the bat of right fielder Brett Erickson who went 2-for-2 and drove in two runs – including the game winning run in the third inning.

Nate Sillerud also went 2-for-2 in the game and had a single RBI. Sillerud doubled to left field in the seventh inning which scored Ver Steeg who had led off the inning with a triple.

Turner Storm had the other base knock for Concordia in the opener.

Syverson continued the quality pitching for the Cobbers in Game 2. He gave up a pair of runs in the second inning, after only facing three batters in the first, but then settled into a groove and retired seven straight Yellow Jacket batters from the third to the fifth frames.

Syverson gave up a single run in the sixth inning but then worked out of a jam in the seventh inning when he induced a double play ground ball to end the game.

Syverson struck out a pair of batters in the game and only walked one hitter.

Concordia trailed 2-1 heading into the bottom fourth inning but then plated two runs in the fourth and fifth innigns and added an insurance run in the sixth.

The Cobbers outhit Waynesburg 9-6 in the second game. Nate Hoeft led the CC offense from the leadoff spot as he went 3-for-4 and drove in the go-ahead run in the fifth.

Ver Steeg was the only other Cobber player with more than one hit in the game. He went 2-for-3 and drove in a run with a double in the fifth.

VER STYMIED: Austin Ver Steeg pitched in two games in Florida, went 2-0 and finished with a 0.69 ERA. He pitched a team-best 13.0 innings and only allowed six hits while striking out 15. His WHIP (walks + hits /innings pitched) was a measly 0.76 (last year's MLB National League Cy Young award winner Max Scherzer had a 0.90 WHIP) and he only allowed on extra-base hit in his two outings.

LEINTZ LINES: Senior left fielder Nate Leintz finished the 11-game Florida fling by leading the team in batting average, hits, slugging percentage and was second in on-base percentage. Leintz hit .357 in his 42 at bats and had four extra base hits for a .500 slugging percentage. Leintz had a hit in eight of the 11 games.

STEALING SIGNIFICANCE: The Cobbers only stole three bases in the first six games in Florida and went 1-5. In the final five games Concordia swiped 9 bases, had at least one steal in all five games, and went 4-1.

WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will fly home and then have a 17-day break before hitting the road to travel to Illinois to play Dominican, Wheaton and Beloit at Wheaton College in Wheaton , Ill. on Mar. 23-24.