Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
Upper Iowa used tremendous pitching to quiet the Northern State offense and sweep a pair of NSIC games in their home opener in Fayette this afternoon.  The Peacocks won game one, 8-2, as Eric Anderson improved to 4-0 on the year and Rory Kolo earned a save.  Martin Valdez was dominant on the mound for UIU in game two, 3-0, earning a complete game shutout as the home team scored two of their three runs on solo homeruns.  Valdez improved to 3-0 on the season.  Tyler Adams and Mikey Henrichs both picked up three hits on the day.
 
With the sweep, the Peacocks improved to 9-6 overall and 2-0 in the Northern Sun.  The games were the first action for UIU since Mar. 15 in Clearwater, Fla.  UIU was happy to get back on the field after 10 straight home games were cancelled.
 
“Today was a great day,” said Head Coach Mark Danker. “I couldn’t have been prouder of the pitching all day long.  EA (Eric Anderson) struggled early with control and Martin got a few runners on early, but what he did over the final seven innings today is some of the best pitching I have seen on this field. We’re all jacked up right now because it felt like another opening day for us after close to three weeks off.”
 
Game One Recap
 
The Peacocks got on the board in the first inning as Tyler Adams singled to lead off and later scored on NSU’s second wild pitch of the inning.  Mikey Henrichs walked and came home on a fielder’s choice off the bat of John Dobson.  After the Peacocks loaded the bases thanks to a single by William Loza, a walk and an error, Henrichs delivered a two-run single up the middle.  Upper Iowa nearly added a third run in the inning, but Adams was caught at home after a wild pitch.
 
The Wolves cut the deficit in half in the third inning with two runs on two hits including a triple to open the inning and an rbi-double two batters later.  The second NSU run came on a passed ball.
 
The visitors threatened again in the fourth, but UIU’s right fielder Andrew Kraus threw a two-hopper to the plate to cut down the Wolves’ runner at the dish.  Loza blocked the plate and made the tag to complete the play and end the top of the fourth. 
 
UIU kept the momentum going with an rbi-double by Sam Kortes that plated Loza in the bottom of the inning to push their lead back to three runs, 5-2.
 
In the sixth, the home team put the game out of reach with three runs on two hits and two Northern State errors.  The Wolves misplayed a pair of Upper Iowa sac bunts that allowed a pair of unearned runs to score later in the inning.  Adams singled home the final run of the game.
 
On the mound, Upper Iowa’s starter Eric Anderson improved to 4-0 on the year throwing four innings and allowing two runs on three hits while striking out four.  Rory Kolo earned his first save of the year after shutting the Wolves out over the final three innings giving up just one hit, which came to the first batter he faced.
 
“It was good for Rory to get out there and build some confidence out there,” said Danker.  “We’re going to need every one of our pitchers before this season is all over. “
 
Game Two Recap
 
A pitcher’s duel broke out in game two as UIU’s Martin Valdez matched up against NSU’s Nathan Nietfeld. 
 
The Wolves’ hurler was perfect through 3.2 innings before allowing a double to Henrichs in the fourth inning.  Northern State was able to strand the UIU third basemen as the game moved to the fifth inning without a run on the board.
 
Valdez worked through a few base runners over the first two innings, but then settled in and retired 18 straight batters from the final out of the second through the second out of the eighth inning.
 
Upper Iowa had trouble reaching base against Nietfeld, but in the fifth, Anderson, who was playing left field in game two, hit a solo homerun over the wall in right centerfield to give the home team a 1-0 lead.  Henrichs improved UIU’s lead to 2-0 with a homerun to left centerfield.
 
In the eighth inning, the Peacocks added an insurance run.  Loza led the inning off with a single and moved to third thanks to a ground out and a single into center by Adams.  A balk allowed Loza to score the game’s final run.
 
“On offense, we came up with some big two-out runs in game one and that is a huge boost to the offense,” Danker stated. “In the second game, the two homeruns were great, just too bad we didn’t have any runners on.  Both (game two) pitchers did a good job of not walking anyone and giving any free passes.”
 
Valdez threw nine innings allowing just four hits to the Wolves while keeping them off the scoreboard.  The junior from Baldwin Park, Calif. struck out nine batters; the second highest total by a Peacock pitcher this season.  Anderson fanned 10 in his win over Minnesota, Crookston.  Thanks to the shutout, Valdez’s earned run average has now dropped to 1.80 in his 25 innings on the hill.
 
Upper Iowa will travel to Kearney, Neb. to face the Lopers of the University of Nebraska-Kearney in a four-game, non-conference series.  The double headers will be played on Saturday and Sunday, Apr. 6 and 7, and both days’ action will begin at 12 p.m.
 
“This coming weekend will be good for us to get a feel for a weekend series like we play in the NSIC taking the field four times,” said Danker.  “We’ll attack those games with the same intensity as today.  After this set of regional games, we’ll have NSIC games the rest of the way.  If our pitching does well, then we will do well the rest of the way.  The Northern Sun is won by teams that pitch the best.”