MINNEAPOLIS --- Crown College Baseball opened their 2021 season on Saturday, playing indoors at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Minnesota Vikings home. St. Norbert was the Storm's opening opponent, and Crown fell in both games, 9-1, 13-11. More importantly, Crown Baseball is back on the field competing after the long pandemic-related hiatus.
In game one, the Green Knights started with an early 5-0 lead that the Storm never touched the rest of the competition. Crown scored their lone run on a Mason Brock double that scored Aaron Clogston. Brock had a fantastic start to his collegiate career, leading the Storm offensively by hitting a triple and a double in both games.
Senior Nicholas Schroedle started on the mound for the Storm and pitched for five innings with four strikeouts and four earned runs. First-year Jacob Van Dam, fresh off hitting five three-pointers in a win over Northwestern, finished the Storm game, striking out one in two innings of relief.
In the second contest, the Crown bats came alive and scored 11 runs, but unfortunately for the Storm, they were always just behind St. Norbert, keeping it close but never fully closing the gap.
The Storm started by scoring five runs in the top of the first. Chad Herrera singled to score Miguel Bonilla. Next, Kyle Schroedle doubled to score Brock, Seth Betts, and Herrera. First-year Rhys Dewick hit into a fielder's choice that scored Schroedle to end the scoring. The Green Knights countered with a six-run inning to take the lead.
The Storm knotted it up at six when Dewick singled to score Herrera in the top of the third. Herrera reached base after an impressive 14-pitch at-bat, resulting in a single and eventually leading to the Storm run. St. Nobert came back in the bottom of the inning with three earned runs, a lead they didn't give up the rest of the contest.
In the fourth inning, Brock scored when Herrera put the ball in play; in the fifth, Dewick hit a single to score Kyle Schroedle, and the Storm were back within one. Unfortunately, the next time Crown found home was in the top of the seventh inning, down four runs.
In the final inning, Clogston reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Kyle Schroedle. Clogston scored when Miguel Bonilla hit his first collegiate triple. Brock followed Bonilla up with a triple of his own to add another run.
Starting pitcher for the second game for the Storm was first-year Caleb Yowell. Senior Eric Newman relieved Yowell, pitching three innings and only allowing a single hit and striking out three. First-year Liam Jones followed Newman, finishing the final two innings.
The Storm are continuing their U.S. Bank Stadium series with a non-conference matchup against the UW-Superior Yellowjackets set for Tuesday.
