DUBUQUE, Iowa - The University of Dubuque baseball team was able to salvage their series against Buena Vista with a Sunday split on Senior Day, losing game one 2-1, before taking game two, 12-3.

Game One
The Spartans and Beavers began the day with a defensive battle with Buena Vista edging UD 2-1 in the opener. 

In the top of the second, it looked as if the Spartans would be able to escape the first jam of the game after the first two Beaver batters reached base but Buena Vista came out with a single to center field to plate the first two runs of the game. However, the Spartans were able to limit the damage to two runs, stranding two Beavers on base. 

The Spartans used some small ball to break through in the bottom of the third. Zach McCoy was hit by a pitch and Kyle Radi walked to begin the inning, before Jake Cekander laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move both runners into scoring position. The bunt would pay off as Cole DeStefanis was able to put the ball in play with a ground out to second base, allowing McCoy to score as the defense was playing back, but that was all the Spartans would be able to get.

The same offensive issues for the Spartans from Friday carried over to game one on Sunday as UD would leave seven runners on base, including the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth to come up short in game one. After giving up the two runs in the second, UD starter Anthony Scanlon would settle in and go 1-2-3 the remaining five innings with the help of a couple double plays.

Game Two
The UD bats broke out in a big way in game two to snap a six game losing streak, scoring in all but two innings on their way to a comfortable 12-3 win. 

For the third time in the series the Spartans scored first, getting an RBI single from Cole DeStefanis and a perfectly executed suicide squeeze by Mitch Pomeroy to jump out to a 2-0 lead. The flood gates really began to open in the bottom of the fourth with a Zach McCoy triple down the left field line to plate both Jacob Sonnefeldt and Patrick Rafferty. The next Spartan batter could not get down another squeeze attempt but it ended up working out for the Spartans as the ball was in the dirt, allowing McCoy to slide home safely, making it 6-1 through four innings. 

The bottom of the fifth would be the second straight inning that UD put up a three spot, getting RBI's from Pomeroy, Rafferty and McCoy to blow it open to a 9-3 lead. The Spartans would flirt with the 10-run rule, adding one run in the sixth and two more in the seventh to go ahead by nine runs but could not quite manage to sneak another run across to end the game early. 

UD would take advantage of a sloppy defensive game for the Beavers, scoring four unearned runs and one wild pitch. Of the Spartans 10 hits, just two were extra base hits but they would also draw five walks and three hit-by-pitches, forcing Buena Vista to use six pitchers in the 12-3 win. 

Edward Rosas gave the Spartans a solid start, coming up just one out shy of qualifying for the win, throwing 4.2 innings, scattering five hits and three runs. Seth Crandall was dominant in relief, pitching a scoreless 4.1 innings while allowing just two hits and striking out six.

Eight of nine UD starters were able to record at least one hit and all nine reached base. Cole DeStefanis and Zach McCoy led the way with two hits each, with McCoy driving in a game-high three RBI.

Up Next
UD travels to Simpson, beginning the four game set in Indianola at 3:30 on Friday, May 7.