GOSHEN, Ind. — Brad Stoltzfus and Colby Malson each worked their way to the top of the Goshen College baseball record books over the weekend in the Maple Leafs' conference-opening series against Spring Arbor University.

Stoltzfus, a senior first baseman, drew his 88th career walk in the fifth inning of Friday's series opener to match the program record set last season by Vincent Caschera. Two innings later, Stoltzfus passed Caschera with his 89th free pass, going on to finish the series with 91 walks. The Cougars went on to claim the lid-lifter 7-6.

Malson, a sophomore infielder, made his mark on the mound in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader. With the Maple Leafs leading 7-3 and two runners on base in the sixth inning, he came out of the bullpen and finished a 10-7 win for his seventh career save. That fireman figure matches the school record set by Tom Bennett (1988-91) and tied by Spenser Triplett in his lone season at GC last year.

While a Ben Longacre two-run homer in the bottom of the third tied the series' rubber game, SAU went on to emerge with a 12-2 victory; at the close of play Sunday, SAU's two wins had matched Indiana Wesleyan's for the most in the Crossroads League. Three of the five conference series were not completed over the weekend due to a late winter storm in central Indiana.

Statistics and recaps from each of Goshen's three games can be found below.

FRIDAY: Spring Arbor 7, Goshen 6

The Maple Leafs (8-11, 1-2) needed three batters to get on the board in the bottom of the first inning, stringing together three singles from Stoltzfus, Longacre and Clinton Stroble II. Hartig would reload the bases with another base hit and a Nolan Holcomb walk forced in another run, but the Leafs left the bases loaded.

A Francisco Ondina double got Spring Arbor (9-12, 2-1) a run in the third before the Cougars scored five in the fifth behind five hits and two errors to take a 6-2 lead. Goshen got a run back in the bottom of the frame but mustered a single hit over the next three innings, while Spring Arbor scored again in the eighth to re-establish the four-run edge.

Longacre stepped to the plate with three on and two out in the bottom of the inning, stroking a two-run double to halve the deficit before Stroble walked to bring the bases to capacity once again. A free pass to Hartig put the tying run 90 feet away, but SAU reliever Vincent Herschberger would record a flyout to strand two inherited runners.

Goshen's lone baserunner of the ninth inning was a one-out walk as pinch-runner Kyle Staelgraeve ended the game on first base.

Longacre was the lone Maple Leaf with two hits, joined by Spring Arbor second baseman Jack Driscoll and shortstop Chris Triplett. Triplett, Ondina, Stoltzfus and Brighton Schofield each worked two walks. SAU's Sam Memelaar earned the win after tossing six innings with five hits, two earned runs and seven strikeouts.

SATURDAY: Goshen 10, Spring Arbor 7

The Maple Leafs used three three-run innings to lead from the third inning on and level the series by the middle of Saturday afternoon. Longacre scored three times and Hartig posted a game-high three hits, although all 10 Goshen hits were of the one-base variety.

The first of those opened the scoring in the first inning as Hartig knocked in courtesy runner Bobby Garcia with two outs, only to see Spring Arbor level the score on an unearned tally its next time up. Longacre, Hartig and Malson all had hits in the third inning, when Stroble added a sacrifice fly and Kody McGuire hit into an RBI fielder's choice to put the Leafs up 4-1.

Each team's defense squandered at least one run in the fifth as Spring Arbor used a two-out error to close within 4-2. Goshen responded with a trio of unearned scores, however, which started with Longacre opening the inning by reaching on a throwing error. Stroble and Hartig moved him ahead with singles before a wild pitch brought in the first run. Two batters later, Schofield singled to plate another run before stealing second to draw the throw that sailed into center field, enabling McGuire to scamper home with a 7-2 Goshen lead.

The Cougars chased Goshen starter Travis Grimm with a walk-single-double start to the top of the sixth, bringing in a run on the scoreboard and Malson on the field. After a strikeout, pinch-hitter Peyton Harding added a two-run single to pull within 7-5 and roll the lineup back to the top: Driscoll and Triplett each flied out as the tying run to end the inning.

For a moment in the bottom of the inning, Goshen's offense ran not on getting hits but getting hit as Garcia and Stoltzfus were struck by back-to-back pitches. Longacre and Stroble each drove in runs with their singles before Malson loaded the bases with his to set up a McGuire sacrifice fly.

SAU would post three hits in the top of the seventh and score twice in the process, but the first run came on a sacrifice fly for the inning's first out. A two-out double got the tying run as close as the batter in the hole, but a groundout to second got GC out of the inning with a 10-7 win.

SATURDAY: Spring Arbor 12, Goshen 2

For the first time in the series, Spring Arbor got on the board first in game number three. A pair of singles to start the game set up a Herschberger sacrifice fly in the first inning while three singles put the guests up 2-0 after a frame and a half.

Stoltzfus worked his last walk of the weekend with one out in the third inning, two pitches before Longacre caused a 1-0 delivery to clear the left-field fence to tie the score. From that point on, SAU starter Duncan Patterson stifled Goshen's offense, giving up two hits over the last 5 2/3 innings in a game where his comrades mustered 19.

The Cougars broke the game open with six runs on eight hits in the fifth, an inning in which nine of the first 10 batters reached base and the 10th hit a sacrifice fly. A bases-loaded single from Josiah Kitchen made the advantage 10-2 after six innings before two unearned runs in the seventh triggered the mercy rule.

Longacre went 3-for-4 at the plate to account for the majority of Goshen's hits while every SAU starter reached safely at least once. First baseman Jacob King was 3-for-4 while five teammates had two hits each. A Danilo Leon double was Spring Arbor's lone extra-base hit.

After splitting a doubleheader Sunday at Bluffton (more to come later Monday), Goshen is scheduled to continue its Crossroads League slate with a single game Tuesday at Mount Vernon Nazarene. Due to precipitation in the forecast and Goshen's travel time of more than four hours into Ohio, a decision is expected Monday night about the status of Tuesday's game.