Game 1: Evangel 12, Culver-Stockton 10 | Box Score
Game 2: Culver-Stockton 19, Evangel 7 | Box Score
Records: Evangel (10-9, 3-4); Culver-Stockton (6-15, 2-6)
Location: Nichols Field

CANTON, Mo. – Evangel used a six-run, fifth-inning rally to pull out a 12-10 victory and clinch a Heart Conference series win over Culver-Stockton as part of a doubleheader split with the Wildcats at Nichols Field.

Jordan Yates accounted for eight of EU's 12 runs, going 3-for-5 with five RBIs and three runs scored, while three other Crusaders posted three-hit performances in the game one victory.

Jason Jarrell and Noah Suiter each logged five hits for EU in the twinbill, and Zach Johnston worked 1 2/3 hitless innings of relief to preserve the opening game victory.

Game 1 – Evangel 12, Culver-Stockton 10
Evangel built an early 5-1 cushion behind a three-run first inning and two more in the third, only to watch the Wildcats come back with five runs of their own to take the lead.  

But EU knotted the score with a run in the fourth on Jarrell's RBI double, then took control of the contest for good with its six-run outburst in the top of the fifth. Yates belted a one-out grand slam to highlight the rally, while Suiter added an RBI single and a sixth EU run crossed the plate on a two-out wild pitch.

The Crusaders opened the game with an offensive flurry that included three-consecutive doubles from Patrick Gaul, Suiter and Yates as part of a three-run rally.

The Wildcats plated a run in the bottom of the first, but EU extended its lead in the third via a Grant Kosanke sacrifice fly and a bases-loaded hit batsman.

Culver appeared to gain control with a five-run third, using a two-run double by German Sepulveda and run-scoring hits from Cole Hansel and Cody Dennis, as well as a Collin Hall sac fly to take a 6-5 lead.

The Wildcats struck for two more in the fourth after EU had evened the score in the top half of the inning, but the Crusaders broke the game open with six runs on four hits and one Wildcat error in the decisive fifth inning.

Johnston earned his second save of the year in support of winning hurler Truett Gardner (1-0), working around a pair of walks over the final two frames after C-SC had trimmed its deficit to 12-10 with a two-run fifth inning.

Game 2 – Culver-Stockton 19, Evangel 7
After the Crusaders scored a run in the top of the first inning, Culver plated 14 unanswered runs over its first three turns at-bat, scoring seven in the first and five more in the second to seize control for good.

Douglas Barker and Caleb Antonacci each drove in four runs for the Wildcats, while Alejandro Cardinale added a 3-for-4 effort to lead the home club's 18-hit attack.

A two-run single by Casey Downs and Antonacci's three-run double highlighted the first-inning surge by the Wildcats, who touched up EU pitching for seven hits in the rally. Barker and Quick each drove in a pair with doubles, before Cardinale added an RBI single as part of another big inning in the second for C-SC.

The duo of Antonacci and Barker gashed the Crusaders again with run-producing hits in the third to make it a 14-1 game.

C-SC's Stefan Stockwell (1-0) limited EU to two runs on six hits through 5.0 innings, before the Crusaders broke through with five runs in the seventh, with the help of a pair of Wildcat errors and two wild pitches. Stephen Belcher singled to drive in a run, and Suiter added a two-out hit that plated the final EU tally.

Suiter and Belcher each finished the game 2-for-4 for Evangel, while Jarrell added a 2-for-3 performance.

Up Next
The Crusaders return to Springfield for a four-game Heart Conference series with Missouri Valley, beginning with a Noon doubleheader Friday (March 26) at Crusader Field.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EUAthletics, Twitter (@EUAthletics), or visit EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the new Evangel Crusaders GamedayApp through Google Play. 

—EvangelAthletics.com—