PELLA — The Central College baseball team made a late charge in game two, but fell short in a 6-5 loss and were swept after losing the opener 11-0 Tuesday against Simpson.
Trailing 6-2 at the start of the sixth inning in the nightcap, Central's No. 5 and No. 6 hitters helped the Dutch stage a late charge. Second baseman Noah Stochl (junior, New Hampton)led off with a double before Kyle Crampton (sophomore, Omaha, Neb., Millard South HS) parked a ball over the fence for a two-run home run. Crampton also drove Stochl home with an RBI double in the fourth.
"Kyle got a couple of fastballs that he hit really well," coach Matt Schirm said. "When he gets those pitches in the zone in a fastball count he generally does a decent job of taking advantage.
Central was unable to score after that, leaving the game-tying run on third base to end the game. It's the first time the Dutch (6-12, 4-6 IIAC) have been swept by the Storm (8-15, 5-7 IIAC) in Indianola since 2011.
Central used six different pitchers across both games, highlighted by Dakotah Wolken's (senior, Dillon, Iowa, East Marshall HS) appearance in the second game. Wolken threw the final 3.0 innings, striking out three without allowing a hit.
"Dakotah kept us in the game and gave us a chance to tie the game late," Schirm said.
Central was limited to just two hits in the opener, both off the bat of left fielder Spencer Gritsch (senior, Brooklyn, Iowa, BGM HS). Shortstop Garrett Saunders (freshman Bonaparte, Iowa, Van Buren HS) was 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in game two.
The Dutch step away from league action tomorrow with a nine-inning affair against Grinnell College starting at 3 p.m. in Pella at A.N. Kuyper Athletics Complex baseball field. A four-game weekend set in Storm Lake against Buena Vista University follows on Friday and Saturday.
"It's a good game for us to try and get back on track, especially offensively," Schirm said. "We've really struggled over the last four games. Hopefully it'll help us get ready to go up to Buena Vista this weekend."
