Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Like Columbus State Athletics on Facebook!
Tweet #GoCSU

By: Josh Fuller

BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Columbus State University baseball team split a nonconference doubleheader at Lynn Saturday. The games took place at the Lynn Baseball Field in Boca Raton, Fla.
 
The Cougars took the first game 8-6 before falling 5-2 in seven innings in game two.
 
Columbus State and Lynn will play the rubber game of the series Sunday afternoon at noon.

Game One
 
The Cougars scored at least a run in each of the first five innings racking up 14 hits in the contest.
 
After each team scored a run thanks to an error in the first, Miles Cameron made it 2-1 in the top of the second singling home Turner Vincent, who doubled with one-out to start the rally. CSU was unable to add on in the inning.
 
Lynn came right back in its half of the inning with a solo homer and another run off of a CSU error to take a 3-2 lead.
 
Columbus State got the lead back with one swing of the bat in the third. After Tyler Fichter reached on an error and Lake Hart earned a walk, Mason McClellan launched a homer to right to make it a 5-3 Cougar lead.
 
CSU made it 6-3 in the fourth after Cameron doubled to right-center with one-out and moved to third on a wild pitch. Justin Evans cashed in on the RBI chance putting the ball in play allowing Cameron to score.
 
Lynn got a run back in the bottom of the fourth, but the Cougars had another answer in the fifth. Fichter got a leadoff single and Mason McClellan followed with a single of his own to put runners on the corners. Gunar Drinnen hit a sacrifice fly to score another making it a 7-4 Cougar lead.
 
Things became interesting in the bottom of the fifth as Lynn got another solo homer with one-out inching closer to the lead. Cougar starter Caleb Kutsche tried to work out of a two-on, one-out jam, recording the second out of the frame before a double made it a 7-6 game.
 
After Kutsche got out of the jam in the fifth, Cougar head coach Greg Appleton turned to Perez Knowles in the sixth. Knowles delivered for the Cougars as he kept Lynn off the board for the final four innings to earn a save. Knowles retired the final eight hitters he faced allowing just one hit in his outing.
 
Columbus State added an insurance run in the seventh on a Drinnen RBI single.
 
Kutsche (2-0) earned the win tossing five innings allowing six runs (four earned). He struck out seven while allowing nine hits.
 
Five Cougar players had at least two hits led by Mason McClellan's 2-for-5 performance. McClellan drove in three while Drinnen chased home two.
 
Game Two
 
The nightcap had an inauspicious start for Columbus State. After stranding a runner in scoring position in the first, Lynn started the bottom of the inning with back-to-back homers off of CSU starter Brandon Koehler.
 
It stayed 2-0 in Lynn's favor until the third as the Cougars scored their first run of the game. Drew Webb drew a one-out walk before swiping second. Evans would put the ball in play to third where the third baseman misplayed the ball allowing Webb to cross the plate.
 
The Cougars had another chance in the fourth loading the bases with two outs, but they were unable to come through.
 
After settling in, Lynn finally got to Koehler for more runs in the fifth. Thanks to a wild pitch and a passed ball, a single drove home a run to make it 3-1 before a double added another run for the Knights. Lynn went in front 5-1 in the sixth after CSU walked a run in.
 
The Cougars attempted a late comeback in the seventh getting back-to-back singles from Webb and Evans with one-out. Grant Berry grounded out to bring home a run, but a strikeout ended the game with the tying run on deck.
 
Koehler (0-1) took the loss after allowing four runs (three earned) in five innings. Chaz Wilson allowed a run in his one inning of work.
 
Webb went 1-for-2 with two runs in the start, while Evans and Berry both went 1-for-4 with a RBI.