Cloud Grounds Saint Bats in Split

Seward struggled offensively Saturday in a split at Cloud to begin a crucial season ending series in Concordia. Seward won the first game one 5-4 in eight innings before Cloud blanked the Saints 6-0.

In game one, Johnny Griffith drove home a run in the second before Cloud scored two in the bottom of the inning. Seward tied the game in the third when Mason Marshall doubled home a run. Alex Scanlan’s sacrifice fly in the the fifth gave the Saints a 3-2 lead before Cloud scored a run in the bottom of the inning. Scanlan doubled to lead off the seventh. Bret Lewis delivered a clutch two out hit to gve Seward a 4-3 lead into the bottom of the seventh. Cloud tied the game in the bottom of the inning. Alex Scanlan’s infield hit squirted just past the mound to drive home the go aheaad run in the eighth which made it 5-4 in the eighth. It was a frustrating offensive game for the Saints stranding 13 runners on base. Tyler Wiedenfeld (10-2) is tied for the NJCAA lead in wins. Johnny Griffith pitched a scoreless eighth for his fifth save and 11th of his career which places him one behind Travis Parker on Seward’s all time list.

Game two turned in the fourth when Seward pitcher Austin King was struck in the face by a one hop come backer to the mound. It hit him in the face and King walked off the field with his team trailing 3-0. Seward mustered just five hits in the loss.

Seward is 27-26 overall and 19-11 in the Jayhawk West while Cloud is 22-26 and 11-19. Garden City swept Dodge City so Seward is one game behind the Busters for first going into today’s action. Sunday’s games in Concordia begin at 1 p.m. and air on Talkradio 1270 and kscbnews.net.