Despite Steven Ring's 14th home run of the season, the Hillsdale College baseball team lost its home finale of the season Wednesday afternoon, 9-5, to a very good Concordia (Mich.) team.
The loss drops Hillsdale to 21-23 on the season. The Chargers are off this weekend before concluding the regular season at Lake Erie May 6-7.
The Cardinals might be an NAIA program, but they have enjoyed a terrific season and looked good in all phases of the game Wednesday afternoon. After the win, the team sports an overall record of 38-9.
Concordia outhit Hillsdale 13-6 in the game, and the Chargers hurt themselves by committing five errors in the field. Three of the Cardinals' nine runs were unearned, and Concordia pitching struck out seven Hillsdale batters in the game.
Ring's home run, a two-run shot in the fifth inning, puts him tied for second place on Hillsdale's single-season home runs list, tied with the 14 Chris McDonald hit last year. The school record is 15 and has stood since 1987.
Ethan Wiskur was 2-for-4 with a run batted in, and Colin Boerst had a hit, a walk and scored two runs. Freshman Jake Rhodes had an RBI triple for the Chargers.