Coe senior Michael Goerdt was being mobbed by his teammates at home plate Saturday at Daniels Park when one of the Central College players asked a good question.

"What are we pitching to HIM for?," the Central player wondered aloud in frustration.

The Dutchmen did not learn their lesson and Goerdt made them pay dearly.

Goerdt set a school record with three home runs in a single game and belted the game-winner with nobody out in the bottom of the ninth for a dramatic 7-6 victory in the nightcap of an Iowa Conference doubleheader.

Central won the first game, 8-0.

Goerdt, a left-handed batter from Waterloo Columbus, socked three solo home runs in the second game, all to a similar spot behind the right-field fence. He connected in the fourth inning, again in the fifth inning and again in the ninth with the score tied 6-6.

"They kept hanging curveballs and I kept punishing them," said Goerdt. "That's what we're taught to do."

It was the first time he's ever hit three home runs in a single game, at any level of baseball except perhaps in his back yard.

"No, I've never done that. Good spot for it, though," he allowed.

The Kowawks (13-9, 21-10) did not do much hitting in the first game and were trailing 5-0 in the fourth inning of the nightcap when Goerdt broke the ice with his first home run. The Kohawks scored three more times in the frame to creep within 5-4, setting the stage for late-game heroics.

Jack Hoffmann hit a solo home run in the eighth inning to tie the game 6-6, then Goerdt finished the job in the ninth. According to the Coe athletic department, nobody had ever hit three homers in a single game for the Kohawks in school history.

"It's special," said Coach Steve Cook. "It's special, because it's Senior Day, to see him have that special moment. He's a leader for our team. You hope that experience happens to all your kids at some point.

"He must have been seeing it well and things were clicking for him on finding it at the plate. The ball was jumping off his bat."

Goerdt is one of many good hitters for the Kohawks, who have won nine of their last 10 games and climbed into second place in the Iowa Conference behind Wartburg with six games left in the regular season. He is hitting .372 with five homers and 16 RBIs, with four of those homers coming in the weekend four-game series against Central.

Coe leads the Iowa Conference in team batting average and team ERA, a good combination as it bids for a high seed in the league tournament that will be played at Veterans Memorial Stadium May 7-9.

The Kohawks began the conference campaign by losing all four of their home games to Wartburg, but they are 13-5 since.

"We're a pretty good team," said Goerdt. "I like where we're at. Our pitching staff has come along and our bats have come along. We'll keep rolling and see what happens come postseason."

Hoffmann (7-1) pitched five strong innings in relief in the second game Saturday and got the victory. He did not allow any runs on three hits.

Hoffmann went 3-for-3 in the first game and Doerdt was 2-for-4.

Coe plays a doubleheader at Buena Vista Tuesday, then finishes the league campaign with a pair of twinbills at Dubuque next weekend.

Game 1

Central   200 501 0 - 8 15 0
Coe       000 000 0 - 0 7 0

W - Diveney (3-3). L - Jacobson (4-3).

Game 2

Central   003 210 000 - 6 8 0
Coe       000 410 011 - 7 8 2

W - Hoffmann (7-1). L - Dormacker (1-4).