Offensive firepower leads to second-day sweep

KANSAS CITY, MO. – The Mustangs lit up the scoreboard against Clarke today, taking two wins, 7-1 and 6-5, to take 3-of-4 games in the two-day series.

Morningside backed a strong outing for Conner Maston with plenty of offense, getting on the board in the second inning as the sophomore threw four shutout innings with just three hits. Sebastian Zamora came on in relief, with a solo home run being the lone blemish for the Mustangs. 

Meanwhile it was Connor Woods that did the damage for the visiting Mustangs, depositing a two-run homer over the right field wall. Ryan Kiolbassa added an RBI single and Michael Delzell drove in two with a double to blow the contest open in the second frame. Jacob O'Dell also had a pair of hits in the game, collecting a double in the process.

Clarke took advantage of untimely Morningside miscues to manufacture runs in the finale, getting its five runs on just two hits. Starter Tiago Sanchez gave up three runs, all unearned, in four innings before surrendering the mound to Zach Koelfgen, who paired late offense with stingy pitching. Sam Hanson took the ball from Koelfgen and closed the door, collecting a save in 0.2 innings' work. 

Woods added another three RBIs in the contest, while O'Dell tacked on a solo shot and a Giacomo Crosetti double scratched across another run.

Morningside's time in Kansas City has come to a close, but the Mustangs won't be back on campus for long, as the new page of the calendar starts with a spring break trip to Arizona. Morningside kicks off a four-game series at Embry-Riddle on Saturday at noon central time, with 10 games in Arizona over the course of a week.