WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - The Malone University baseball team was victorious in their first game of the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational over Concordia University St. Paul 11-6. The Pioneers are now 8-1 overall while the Bears are 4-7.

The win was historic for the program and Head Coach Tom Crank. Crank, the winningest coach in Malone athletics history, now sits at 600 career victories at the helm of Pioneer baseball. 
 
Concordia St. Paul struck first with two runs on two hits in the top of the first inning, however Malone responded with two runs of their own thanks to RBI singles by Reilly Tyna and Vincent Alvarez. The starter Jackson Phelps settled in for a 1-2-3 second inning and the offense kept their foot on the gas to give him some breathing room.
 
The Pioneers scored six in total in the second inning thanks to five hits and a pair of homeruns. Colin Coblentz added on to his team-lead with a three-run blast to left field and Alvarez made it 8-2 with a two-run shot. The lead increased to 9-2 when Shane Coblentz scored on a wild pitch and 10-2 when Jake Barker scored on a sacrifice fly by Alvarez.
 
Concordia St. Paul chipped away at the deficit, but could not put together a crooked number to make the Pioneers nervous. The Bears scored one in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings and Malone took advantage of a bases loaded wild pitch to get to the 11-6 final score.
 
Phelps (1-0) received the win with five innings of work. He struck out six and allowed just two hits, two runs and four walks. Landon Homan and Ashton Snyder had a pair of innings on the mound in a relief role. At the plate, the team's nine RBIs were shared between Alvarez (four), Colin Coblentz (three) and Tyna (two). Alvarez had a team-high three hits (3-for-4) while both Coblentz's, Tyna and Charlie Roberts were credited with multiple hits.
 
On Friday, March 6, the Pioneers will compete against Point Park University beginning at 12:15 P.M. and Saint Michael's College at 3:30 P.M.