Parkville, Mo. - The No. 12 Central Methodist baseball program split the final two games of its four game series against Park University Saturday in Parkville, Mo. 

With the split, CMU now stands at 34-12 and 19-9 in the Heart, while the Pirates are now 22-18 and 13-15 in conference action. 

Central fell in the first game Saturday by a final score of 12-11. CMU held an 11-7 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh, but the Pirates scored five runs on five hits and one Central error to complete the comeback victory. 

Cole Luedeking led the CMU bats, batting .800 with four singles and two runs scored. Tanner Sears and Bobby Nichols picked up three hits apiece including an RBI double for Sears in the first inning. Sears finished the game with three RBI and drew one walk. 

Sebastian Escobar tossed four innings on the bump, giving up two earned runs on three hits with four strikeouts. Tyler Vicars pitched the final 2.2 innings and recorded two strikeouts. 

The Eagles responded in game two with 15 runs on 18 hits with four walks. Scoring four total runs in the first two innings of play, CMU finished the game scoring four in the fourth, two in the fifth, and five in the sixth. 

Luedeking once again led the way with three hits in five at-bats including a double. Khalil Thrasher also batted three-of-five with two RBI and two runs scored. Tommaso Giarola blased a solo home run in the fifth inning. Overall, nine different Eagles recorded at least one hit and eight picked up at least one RBI. 

Nichols continues to add to his single-season record, recording two more bases in the finale to bring his total to 46 this season. Nino Puckett earned his third win of the season, pitching five complete inning and tallying five strikeouts. Ryan Jeffers and Drew Marrufo both saw action on the bump, as each pitched one inning. 

Central will conclude the regular season with a four game series against Benedictine College beginning Friday April 29 at 12:00 p.m. in Atchison, Kan. 

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