Lemke’s three-run blast clinches series with Coe

INDIANOLA, Iowa – Brennen Lemke crushed a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Simpson College baseball team to a dramatic 6-3 victory over Coe in Saturday's opener. The Kohawks wrapped the weekend with a 7-1 win in game two.

The Storm (13-14, 4-9 A-R-C) earned their second American Rivers Conference series of the season with the game-one win, claiming a series from Coe (14-12, 9-6 A-R-C) for the first time since 2018.

Game 1: Simpson 6, Coe 3
Pinch hitting with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Lemke propelled the Storm to their second-straight victory with a three-run homer to left field. Simpson led 3-1 going into the eighth inning, but the Kohawks scored two on a single to even things up late. Luke Willis reached on an error and Keaton DeKock drew a walk before Lemke's walk-off blast.

Brett Kauzlarich earned the win in relief of Brady Held who tallied his fourth double-digit strikeout effort (11) and kept the Kohawks without a hit for five and a third innings.

Game 2: Coe 7, Simpson 1
Matthew Marquez sliced the Kohawks' early 2-0 lead in half with an RBI-single up the middle in the fourth, scoring Ty Cowley who opened the frame with a base hit and advanced to third on a single by Willis.

Coe regained its one-run lead in the sixth before breaking open the game with four runs in the seventh.

Willis led the team with two hits and Lemke extended his on-base streak to 18 games with a single in the ninth.

Up Next
Simpson remains home to host Central for a doubleheader on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.