Storm come back to eliminate Wartburg
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Simpson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 13 | 0 |
|
Wartburg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 4 |
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Simpson baseball team isn't ready to call it a season just yet.
Down 6-4 in the ninth, Simpson scored three runs in the top half and Matt Pennings closed the door in the home half as Simpson beat Wartburg 7-6, winning its second elimination game of the day in the process.
Michael Chia scored the winning run in the ninth when Wartburg second baseman Joe Grote made an errant throw on Bud Smith's ground ball.
Chia and Barr – both seniors – drove in runs in the ninth as the fifth-seeded Storm (22-21) advance to play Loras on Friday at 7 p.m.
Brock Borgeson (1-3) didn't allow a run in 2 2/3 innings to get the win. The save was the third of the season for Pennings and the ninth of his career, a new school record.
Chia went 2-for-4 with a triple and Brett Crable, Tyler Craig, and Jake Scieszinski had two hits apiece.
Simpson snapped a five-game losing streak against Wartburg in the conference tournament, beating the Knights for the first time since 2006. Wartburg eliminated Simpson in 2007, 2010 and 2011.
Ryan Kemp had a hit and drove in two runs for the second-seeded Knights (25-17), who were eliminated. Wartburg lost to Central 6-1 in its first game of the tournament.
