Auburndale, Fla. - The Alma College baseball team split its games during the second day of play in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, falling to No. 20 Wartburg (Iowa) College, 4-3, before rebounding with a 4-1 win over Cleary (Mich.) University.

GAME 1 - No. 20 Wartburg (Iowa) 4, Alma 3

The Scots built a 3-0 advantage of 20th-ranked Wartburg, but the Knights scored the final four runs, including a walkoff in the bottom of the ninth. Senior David Carles (Staten Island, N.Y./Petrides/College of Staten Island) and senior Doug Walters (Brighton, Mich./Brighton) each registered two hits in the game, including a double, while Walters drove in all three runs to earn three RBIs.

Senior Matt Launstein (Flushing, Mich./Flushing) pitched six innings in the loss, allowing no earned runs and striking out seven batters, while senior Blake Ordiway (Holly, Mich./Holly) received the loss after coming in to relieve Launstein in the top of the seventh.

GAME 2 - Alma 4, Cleary (Mich.) 1

Alma used a three-run eighth inning to capture the victory against Cleary. Cleary took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second before the Scots tied the game in the top of the sixth after one hit and three walks, including one intentional. In the eighth inning, the first two Alma batters were walked before Walters hit a two-RBI double to give Alma a 3-1 advantage, which would be enough to go on for the victory.

Alma will continue play in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational on Thursday, March 3, with a single game, facing St. Vincent (Pa.) in Winter Haven, Fla. Game time is set for 10:30 a.m.

QUOTES

Head Coach Jake Sabol

On the Wartburg game...

"I thought our guys really battled against a quality, ranked opponent. We were one pitch away from a victory and competed for all nine innings. Wartburg just made one more big play than us and that played a major factor in the outcome. Matt Launstein was outstanding, really commanding the plate with his fastball. Had it not been his first start of the season, he may have had a chance to finish what he started."

On the Cleary game...

"You can't say enough about the quality of starting pitching we have gotten so far over our first 4 games. Colin Nash competed and kept us in the ball game for 8 innings. He battled like crazy, finally allowing our offense to scratch a few across late. Doug Walters is really swinging the bat well to start the year. He had a big two-run double to give us the lead late. He has been a workhorse for us so far, catching every inning behind the plate in each of the four games."