• Sophomores Brock Moore and Cole Baumgart drive in two runs apiece
• Freshman Izzaq Zrust improves to 4-0 with the win
• DMACC faces top-seeded SECC in the winner's bracket

Sophomores Brock Moore of Urbandale and Cole Baumgart of Clarinda had two hits and two runs batted in apiece as the DMACC baseball team handed Northeast (Neb.) Community College (NENCC) a 12-6 loss in the first round of the Division II Region 11 Baseball Tournament earlier today at Carroll.

The Bears, seeded fourth, battled back from an early 5-1 deficit to improve to 31-23 with their fourth win against the Hawks in as many games this season. DMACC led 1-0 after the first inning but fifth-seeded NENCC scored two runs in the top of the second and three in the top of the third for its 5-1 advantage. The Bears made it a 6-5 game with five runs in the bottom of the fourth and pushed their advantage to 9-5 with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. They added another run in the seventh and two in the eighth to go up 12-5 before NENCC closed to 12-6 with a run in the ninth.

Freshman Drew Owen of Alleman, who joined Moore and Baumgart with two hits in the game, gave DMACC its 1-0 lead in the first when he reached on a two-out single and came around to score on a NENCC error off an infield grounder by Moore.

Four of the five runs the Bears scored in the fourth were unearned because of another NENCC error. Moore opened the inning with a double and scored on a single by sophomore Blake Crancer of Normal, Ill. Sophomore Austin Andersen of Marion also drove in a run with a double and three more runs scored on infield grounders by Baumgart, freshman Brayden Foster of Alleman and sophomore Adam Leininger of Fargo, N.D. The ground balls by Foster and Leininger were booted by NENCC infielders, allowing two runs to score.

Baumgart and sophomore Trey Franck of Marion drove in runs with base hits in the fifth and another run came home on Andersen's sacrifice fly.

Freshman Drake Obermueller of Iowa City scored DMACC's run in the seventh when he singled, took second on Crancer's infield grounder and scored when NENCC committed another error off Andersen's fly ball.

Owen and Leininger scored the Bears' two runs in the eighth when they reached on a base on balls and a double respectively and came home on Moore's second double of the game.

Redshirt freshman Hunter Cook of Polk City started on the mound for DMACC and lasted two innings, allowing four runs on three hits with one strikeout. Freshman Izzaq Zrust of Ladd, Ill., went two innings and got the win, his four of the season against no losses. He allowed one run on two hits and struck out one batter. Sophomore Andrew Theiss of Clear Lake pitched the last five innings and earned his second save of the season. He allowed one run on three hits, struck out two and walked one.

The DMACC baseball team will face top-seeded Southeast (Iowa) Community College  (SEICC) in a championship bracket game May 8 at 3:30 p.m. SECC is 22-5 for the season, including three wins over the Bears. The DMACC-SEICC winner will move ahead to a championship bracket game May 9 at 3:30 p.m. The DMACC-SEICC loser will move to the elimination bracket against an opponent to be determined.

The double-elimination tournament continues through May 10 when the championship game will be played at noon. A second championship game, if needed, would be played immediately following the first championship game.