Baseball Advances to Bracket Championship
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Doane (NE) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 2 |
|
Briar Cliff (IA) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
CRETE, Neb. — Top-seeded Doane stayed alive in the GPAC Baseball Tournament with an 11-4 victory over Briar Cliff in an elimination game Thursday afternoon at Doane Ballfield Complex.
With the win, the Tigers improved to 41-9 overall and advanced in the tournament, using a steady offensive attack and a decisive late-inning surge to pull away.
Doane wasted little time setting the tone, scoring in each of the first two innings. Carter Roth crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly from Jett Grossart in the first, and the Tigers capitalized on a Briar Cliff error in the second to extend the lead to 2-0.
The Tigers continued to apply pressure, pushing the advantage to 4-0 through five innings. Tanner Nelson delivered an RBI single in the fifth, while Doane benefitted from a pair of unearned runs earlier in the contest.
Briar Cliff (27-22) answered in the fifth with a two-run single from Connor Neubeck and added a solo home run by Nico Sall in the sixth to trim the deficit to 5-3. However, Doane responded immediately, plating a run in the sixth on an RBI single from Roth and another in the seventh on an RBI knock from Grossart.
The game broke open in the eighth inning when the Tigers erupted for five runs. Nelson drove in a run with a single before Grossart launched a three-run home run to right field. Brayden Jones followed with a solo shot, extending the lead to 11-3 and putting the game out of reach.
Grossart led the offensive effort, going 2-for-4 with a home run and five RBIs. Nelson added three hits and two RBIs, while Roth finished with two hits, two runs scored, and an RBI. Jones also homered and reached base three times.
On the mound, Gabe Rodriguez earned the win, improving to 8-1 after tossing 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out four. Ethan Merk closed the door with 3.2 innings of relief to secure his fifth save.
Doane totaled 11 runs on 11 hits and drew five walks, while limiting Briar Cliff to four runs on nine hits.
The Tigers will continue play in the GPAC Tournament on Friday as they take on Hastings in the bracket championship round.
(generated by ChatGPT)