Spartans Ten Run Norse in IIAC Tournament
May 10, 2018
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The University of Dubuque cruised to a 11-1 win in eight innings in the quarterfinals of the Iowa Conference Tournament behind a strong offensive performance and a dominate outing on the mound from Chase Kueter.
How It Happened
-The Spartans grabbed the momentum early. In the bottom of the first, Dalton Garst doubled to right center with one out before Thomas Kempf hit an opposite field single to plate Garst and give UD a 1-0 lead.
-Will Doherty carried the momentum over to the second inning as he roped a ball into the left center gap to begin the bottom of the second with a triple. The next batter, Tyler Imrich, ground out to the shortstop but the defense playing back allowed Doherty to score to move the lead to 2-0.
-Zach McCoy began the fourth inning with a single and was bunted over to second by Jarad Clevenger, followed by a single through the left side from Will Doherty to put runners on the corners with one out. Luther tried to pick McCoy off at third base but an errant throw allowed McCoy to score.
-After doubling to right center in the first, Garst doubled to left center to continue the fourth inning rally, plating two more runs to put UD ahead 5-1.
-Luther had runners on first and third in the top of the fifth, but Chase Kueter escaped the jam with no damage with his fifth strikeout of the day
-UD took advantage of another wild Norse throw in the bottom of the fifth. On a chopper to the third baseman off the bat of McCoy, the third baseman sailed the throw over the first baseman’s head allowing Justin Jensen to score from second.
-The Spartans continued to tack on insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Zach McCoy scored on a fielding error by the third baseman off the bat of Doherty before Tyler Imirch delivered a two-run double into the right centerfield gap to build the UD lead to 10-1.
-Justin Justin ended the game in the bottom of the eighth inning by putting the 10 run rule into effect with an RBI double off the right field wall to give UD an 11-1 win.
At the Plate
Zach McCoy: 3-4, 3 R
Will Doherty: 3-4, 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 3B
Dalton Garst: 2-5, 1 R, 2 RBI, 2 2B
Pitching Breakdown
Chase Kueter (W, 7-4): 8.0 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 H, 8 K, 2 BB
Game Notes
-With his eight strikeouts on Thursday night, Chase Kueter broke both the single season strikeout record (69) and the career mark (150).
-After racking up 14 hits, the Spartans have now pounded out at least 11 hits for the fourth straight game.
Up Next
The Spartans will face off against the 2 seed Wartburg College on Friday at noon, which was originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. All of Friday’s games have been pushed up one hour due to possible rain.
