Brand whiffs 10 in complete game shut out

RHP Billy Brand (Burlington, Ont.) pitched a complete game shutout for the Midland Warriors.

BRAND FANS 10
WARRIORS COMPLETE SEASON SWEEP OF BULLDOGS

SEWARD, Neb. – Midland University took both games of their doubleheader with Concordia University on with a 6-3 win in Game 1 and a 2-0 win in Game 2. The Warriors won all four games against the Bulldogs this year. The two teams were tops conference last year with Concordia taking the regular season title and Midland the post-season championship. This year the two teams came in to Wednesday tied for fourth place, looking to improve positioning for the Great Plains Athletic Conference Postseason Tournament next week.

Midland turned to a pair of unlikely starters for both games. Hayden Bailey got the nod in game one and went five innings allowing just one hit and one earned run. Billy Brand (Burlington, Ont.) took the hill in Game 2 and went the distance, pitching a seven inning shutout with only two hits. Both pitchers normally come out of the bullpen, but with a big four-game series with Doane this weekend, coach Chad Miller looked to his relievers for the wins. Both pitchers were making their first starts of the season.

Offensively the Warriors used a five-run fourth inning to put game out of reach. They strung together three hits at the first part of the frame before the Bulldogs aided them with a couple of errors. For the game Tanner Bos, Andrew Brooks, Billy Brand, and Bryan Smith all recorded an RBI while Midland had eight hits. Concordia had five errors in the first game.

Brand was dominant in Game 2 going the distance. He struck out 10 batters and faced two over the minimum 21 batters in his first start of the season. He is 4-1 on the season now with a 0.36 ERA while also playing shortstop as well.

Midland (24-19, 12-10 GPAC) will be back in action Thursday in a nonconference meeting with Bellevue (30-19). The two teams will square off at Moller Field in Fremont, Nebraska with a 4:00 p.m. start time.