Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ST. PAUL, Minn. -- North Central University (NCU) made the short trip to St. Paul on Saturday afternoon as they were set to do battle with the Eagles of Northwestern for their final two contests of their 2019 campaign. The Eagles entered the afternoon with their eyes set on improving upon their already clinched Upper Midwest Athletic Conference postseason berth as they had an opportunity to clinch the number three seed. Northwestern used this opportunity to fuel their offense which caught fire in game one as they pulled away for a 8-1 victory and kept it rolling in game two as they cruised to a 13-3 victory and the series sweep. 

GAME ONE RECAP
Senior Bryce Riege took the mound for the Rams in his final start of his four year career. The right hander could not quite find his rhythm in this one as the Eagles offense seemed to have an answer for him from the plate in the early going. Riege allowed eight runs in his 4.2 innings pitched, but just five of those runs were earned. The Eagles piled on their eight runs in the game in just the first five innings, but it was enough for them to pull away. NCU got one run back late in the ball game thanks to Brandon Scott who finished game one with two hits and the lone run batted in (RBI). With the Rams failing to muster a comeback, the Eagles took game one 8-1.

GAME TWO RECAP
The Eagles carried their strong hitting into game number two, connecting on 15 total hits in the ball gae. Northwestern's string of hits resulted in them scoring at least one run in all eight innings played. Starter, Andrew Kemper, failed to find a secret to slow down the Eagle's offensive attack as he pitched just 3.0 innings, allowing six runs, although only three of those runs were recorded as earned. While down 8-0 in the 5th inning, the Rams offense made some noise by scoring three runs and cutting the deficit to just five, but NCU just could not quite hold pace with the Eagles from the plate. After the Eagles saw their lead get cut to five, Northwestern added five more insurance runs in the ballgame as they walked it off in the 8th to end the game early with a 13-3 victory, 

Season Wrap Up
The Rams finish their 2019 season with four UMAC wins and a 11-20 overall record. NCU made some strong improvements from a year ago as they moved into their final week of the season still with a chance to earn their first UMAC postseason berth, but unfortunately fell just a bit short. The team says good bye to seven seniors; Cory Kukkola, Brandon Scott, Bryce Riege, Taylor Justice, Andrew Kemper, Robert Donohoe, and Tate Andrews. This list of seniors includes four everyday starters for the Rams and two regulars on the mound. The class of 2019 will be missed not only on the field, but their leadership will be missed off the field as well. Looking forward to next year, NCU will still return over half of their starting lineup including two freshman, Michael Barrientos and Cole Sneed, who impressed in their rookie campaigns and should continue to lead a young group into next season. 

MEDIA: If you need further information, please feel free to contact Justin Brown at 612-343-3539 or email Jdbrown@northcentral.edu.