The Newton baseball team lost both games of a doubleheader to Bettendorf 10-6 and 10-3 on Saturday as they traveled to North Polk for the Brent Plange Classic.
The Cardinals led 4-3 after the first three innings of the game in the opener, but Bettendorf took the game by storm in the fourth. Newton scored a run in the top of the fourth inning, but the Bulldogs answered with four runs in the bottom half and three more in the fifth to take a 10–5 lead. In the sixth, the Cardinals scored one more run, but it was insufficient to mount a rally. The Bulldogs scored two runs in the third inning and five more in the fourth to establish a 7-0 lead halfway through the second game, which was all Bettendorf. With two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth, Newton fought back to cut the advantage to 7-3, but Bettendorf responded with three more insurance runs in the seventh to complete the doubleheader sweep.
Cade Bauer went 3-5 in the first game and 2-4 in the second, making him the only Cardinal to register a multi-hit game that day. In the first inning, Bauer added two runs and a double to his total. In the nightcap, he also had two RBIs and a double. Newton dropped to 4-23 overall for the season as Gabe Otto lost game one on the mound and Carter Lehrman lost game two.
On Monday, the Cardinals will travel to Gilbert for a 7 p.m. matchup, marking their return to non-conference road play.
