Held strikes out 16, homers twice in Tuesday split

LINCOLN, Neb. – Brady Held homered twice and struck out 16 in game one, Kolton Arnold hit a three-run bomb in game two, and Luke Willis went 5-for-7 overall to lead the Simpson College baseball team in a Tuesday split with Nebraska Wesleyan.

Both games were one-run affairs as the Storm (9-7, 1-4 A-R-C) took the opener by a score of 2-1 and Nebraska Wesleyan (8-9, 1-1 A-R-C) claimed game two 7-6.

Willis (5), Arnold (4) and Held (3) combined for 12 of Simpson's 18 hits with seven of those going for extra-bases.

Game 1: Simpson 2, Nebraska Wesleyan 1
In another dominating performance both on the mound and at the plate, Held struck out 16 in seven innings and slugged two home runs to help the Storm snap a five-game skid and pick up their first conference win of the season. He surpassed 15 strikeouts for the second time this season and notched his first career game with multiple home runs. 

The senior's first round-tripper came in the sixth inning after he had thrown five scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts and just two hits. After three more K's between the sixth and seventh, he hit what proved to be the game-winning home run in the top of the eighth. Held, who had four home runs coming into the season, has now hit three over the last three games.

Brett Kauzlarich fanned one in the eighth and Zach Hollingsworth earned his second save of the year with three strikeouts in the ninth, giving Simpson its first game with 20 strikeouts in program history. Held's 16 strikeouts rank second all-time behind his 18-strikeout performance on March 13, which remains atop the Division III leaderboard as a single-game high for this season. 

Along with Held, Willis registered three hits as he singled in the second and fourth before doubling in the eighth. It was the second three-hit game of his career.

Game 2: Nebraska Wesleyan 7, Simpson 6
Much like the opener, game two featured three home runs. The Prairie Wolves took a 2-0 lead with a solo shot in each of the third and fourth frames before Arnold launched a three-run homer in the fifth.

Simpson claimed a 6-4 advantage in the seventh when Arnold scored on an errant throw by the catcher after opening the frame with the single. Nebraska Wesleyan loaded the bases in the home half and scored three straight runs thanks to a catcher's interference call, sacrifice fly, and base hit. During the Storm's final at-bat, the tying run was tagged out at home and a strikeout left runners at the corners.

Arnold finished the game 3-for-4 at the plate, while Willis added two more hits to his total.

Up Next
Simpson opens a three-game series with Cornell on Friday, April 1. The Storm will travel to Mount Vernon for a 5:30 p.m. game and then will host the Rams on Saturday for a doubleheader. The two games kick off a six-game home slate which also includes the series finale with the Prairie Wolves and three games with Buena Vista.