CALDWELL, Idaho – Jordan Grubbs roped a walk-off RBI double in the bottom of the tenth inning to cap a 6-for-6 performance, helping the College of Idaho split a doubleheader with Concordia University on Senior Day at Wolfe Field.
Grubbs, who became the third C of I (29-22, 11-13 NAIA West) player with six hits in a game, delivered Chase Miller from third base with two outs to give the Yotes a 6-5 victory in Game 2. The Cavaliers (26-20, 16-8) scored 10 runs in the final three innings to grab Game 1, 15-8.
The Cavaliers broke a 3-3 tie in the eighth inning of the nightcap as Jarren Goddard capped a six RBI day with a two-run single. C of I got within a run on an RBI fielders' choice in the eighth off the bat of Miller, with the outfielder scoring from first on a Grubbs bloop single that was overrun in centerfield by the Cavs.
CU had chances in their final two at-bats – as Grubbs tracked down a long fly by Trent Calmer with the go-ahead runner at second in the ninth and then made a sliding catch on an Elliot North long fly ball in the tenth.
In the bottom of the tenth, Miller reached on an infield single to set the stage for Grubbs, who roped a pitch into the right field corner, with Miller scoring standing up with the Yotes fifth walk-off win of 2015.
Grubbs joined Greg Schelhaas (1999) and Scott Freeman (2001) with six hits and became the fifth player in NAIA West history to log six hits in a game.
Brady Winfield picked up the win, tossing two-plus innings of scoreless relief. Markus Lively got a no-decision, fanning seven in seven innings, with Jake Hennessey and Cole Mansanerez each recording two hits for C of I. Calmer was 3-for-5, with four other CU players recording two hits – part of a 15-hit attack.
In the early game, the Cavaliers extended their win streak to 10 games, breaking open a close game in the late innings.
The visitors used a four-run fourth inning to take the lead, getting a RBI double from Konner Reddick and RBI singles from Ian Erickson and Cole Pittman in the rally. C of I cut the lead in half in the bottom of the inning, as Grubbs delivered a RBI single and a second run scoring on a CU error. However, Connor Weis made the big play of the inning for the Cavs, throwing out Mansanerez at home trying to score on a flyout to get the visitors out of the inning.
The Cavaliers extended the lead to 8-3 in the seventh on an Erickson two-run single, only to watch C of I get a two-run single from Mansanerez and a Johnny Hyland RBI ground out to get back within 8-6.
Concordia put the game out of reach in the eighth on a bases-clearing double from Goddard, adding a two-run double by Nate Esposito and a Jordan Spencer RBI double in the ninth to extend the lead to 15-6.
Blake Evetts worked around eight hits for his seventh win, with Austin Hadley grinding out three-plus innings of relief for his league-leading tenth save. Goddard was 3-for-5 with four RBI; Esposito added three hits, and Erickson was 2-for-5 with three RBI in the win.
Mitch Viydo was 4-for-4, with Hennessey, Miller, Grubbs, and Mansanerez all recording two hits for the Yotes.
C of I closes out the regular-season next Friday and Saturday with a four-game series at Menlo College.
NOTES: The game marked the final home contest for nine C of I seniors – Grubbs, Miller, Lively, Viydo, Brady Mooney, Matt Hamilton, Kyle Garvin, Zach Fabricius, and Gary Koopman…the win was the Yotes fifth walk-off victory of 2015 (9-8 in 11 innings vs. St. Martin's; 8-7 vs. Whitman in 10 innings; 4-3 vs. Corban; and 9-8 vs. Lewis-Clark State), improving to 4-1 in extra inning games.
