BRONXVILLE, N.Y. – The Caldwell University baseball team split a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference doubleheader with Concordia College Saturday afternoon at the Clipper Baseball Field. The Cougars, who won the first game, 4-3 in 10 innings before falling 6-3 in Game 2, are now 4-18 overall and 2-6 in league play. The Clippers are now 12-10, 6-4 CACC.

In the first game, Concordia broke a scoreless tie with a two-run home run by Eric Poldroo in the sixth inning. Caldwell scored its first run of the game in the top of the seventh, loading the bases for sophomore Ryan Rivera (Saddle Brook, NJ/St. Joseph), who singled to score freshman William Levier (Monroe Twp., NJ/Monroe Twp.). The Cougars still had the bases loaded but a double play ended the threat. Then in the top of the eighth, Caldwell filled the bases again, with freshman Paul Marinello (Freehold, NJ/Colts Neck) and sophomore Michael Bernstein (Staten Island, NY/Susan Wagner) drawing walks for a 3-2 lead.

An unearned run in the bottom of the eighth allowed the Clippers to tie the score at 3-3. In the top of the 10th inning with two on and two out, Bernstein singled to right, scoring junior Dominick Orlando (Manalapan, NJ/Holmdel) with the go-ahead run. Junior pitcher Ryan Langdon (Wantagh, NY/Wantagh) retired the Clippers in order in the 10th to close out the win.

Bernstein went 2-for-2 with two RBIs, while Rivera had three hits, including two doubles. Senior Michael Sheridan (Caldwell, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) started and gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings. Senior Robert Humes (Berlin, NJ/Winslow Twp.) pitched 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, and Langdon recorded his first save of the season.

Caldwell struck first in Game 2, as freshman Noah Clark (Toms River, NJ/Toms River East) singled to score Marinello in the top of the first inning. Poldroo hit his second two-run home run of the day to answer for Concordia in the bottom of the first. In the third inning, Marinello hit an RBI single that plated Rivera and tied the score at 2-2. But Vincent Capone-Froio belted a two-run home run in the fourth to put the Clippers back on top, 4-2. Concordia scored two more runs in the bottom of the fifth, and freshman Kevin Goldman (Valley Stream, NY/Valley Stream Central) hit a sacrifice fly to score Bernstein in the ninth with the game's final run.

Mitchell Hillert held the Cougars to six hits and three runs, two earned, while striking out seven in a complete-game effort.

Next up for the Cougars is a CACC doubleheader against USciences on Monday, Apr. 13 at home. The first game is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. at the Kiwanis Oval.