The Malone University baseball team managed a doubleheader split with Alderson Broaddus University Sunday afternoon to take three out of four games from the Battlers in the weekend series. The Pioneers dropped the opener on Sunday 7-1 before bouncing back with a 6-4 victory in the nightcap. With the win in game two, Malone climbed to 15-9 on the season and 5-3 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
 
Game One Recap
The Pioneers struggled to generate much offense against Alderson Broaddus starter Zach Salmon (4-1) who held Malone to just five hits while striking out four in the seven-inning complete game effort. Brenden Wells had two of those five hits. His RBI double to score Joe Crank in the bottom of the third accounted for Malone's only run.
 
After working out of tough spots in the first and second innings, Pioneer starting pitcher Braun Miller (1-2) allowed two runs, including a solo shot by AB's Todd Sekowski, in the top of the third. Alderson Broaddus added two more runs in the top of the fifth when Sekowksi went deep for the second time in as many at bats.
 
The Battlers tacked on three more runs in the seventh before closing out the 7-1 win.  With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, freshman Nate Cobb beat out an infield single to extend his reached-base streak to 23 consecutive games to start his career.

Game Two Recap
Cobb wasted no time in making it 24 straight games, reaching on a bunt single to leadoff the first inning. After stealing second, he would come around to score the game's first run two batters later when Brenden Wells lined a single to center. Wells' base knock extended his hitting streak to 14 straight games.
 
Meanwhile on the mound, rookie righty Kyle Kovach (1-0) was outstanding in his second collegiate start, keeping the Battlers at bay through four scoreless frames.
 
The Malone offense, which left the bases loaded in each of the first two innings, gave Kovach plenty of support with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. A two-run single from Wells made it 3-0 before Keanan Locke went yard on the very next pitch to put the Pioneers up 5-0. Locke's homerun was his third of the season and the 12th of his career.
 
Down 5-0, Alderson Broaddus plated its first run of the game on a two-out line drive to centerfield that took a fortunate bounce past Cobb, rolled to the fence, and allowed a runner to score from first. Kovach induced a harmless fly ball to end the inning a batter later.
 
After an errant throw in the bottom of the fifth gave Malone a 6-1 edge, AB added a run with a sacrifice fly in the sixth to make it 6-2. Kovach, who had not allowed an earned run in 15 innings to start his career, was charged with his first earned run after a leadoff hit batsman came around to score. Kovach would go on to earn his first collegiate win in the contest after tossing 5+ innings, allowing just two hits, two runs (one earned) and two walks while striking out three.
 
In the eighth inning, Alderson Broaddus cut the four-run deficit in half when Canton GlenOak graduate Marquis Collier delivered a two-out two-run single that closed the gap to 6-4. The Battlers failed to come any closer, however, as Pioneer closer Gunnar Smeyres got the final out of the eighth before working a 1-2-3 top of the ninth to preserve the 6-4 win.

Brenden Wells finished the game with four hits and three RBI. Keanan Locke collected three hits and the aforementioned two runs driven in. Nate Cobb and Zach Mottice each recorded a pair of singles and a run scored. Cobb was also a perfect 3-for-3 in stolen bases.
 
Up Next
Malone will play a non-conference doubleheader at Walsh this Wednesday, April 5th. The Pioneers will be the home team in the twinbill.