Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

Box Score

CHICAGO, Ill. (Apr. 14, 2017) – Coming back from a 5-0 deficit, the North Central College baseball team was able to hold on to the victory on Friday over non-conference foe the University of Chicago, holding off a late charge to secure the 11-10 win.
 
Chicago (15-6) jumped on the Cardinals early to the tune of six hits over the first two innings, plating five runs in the process, including four in the bottom half of the second.
 
North Central (11-8) got on the board with a run in the top of the third to slowly begin the comeback, as back-to-back singles from Robert Zebrauskas and Jeremy Quade started the rally with no outs in the inning.  After a flyout moved Zebrauskas to third, Nick Sotiros drove him home with a sacrifice fly to left field, cutting the Maroon lead 5-1.
 
After a scoreless fourth inning, North Central countered with its own four-run inning in the top of the fifth, as all four runs scored with two outs.  Following a pair of groundouts to lead off the inning, Michael Mateja singled to left, proceeded to steal second and came around to score on a Sotiros single to left a few pitches later.
 
After advancing to second on a balk, Sotiros came around to score on the first of three straight doubles, this one off the bat of Chris Hill, while John Carmody followed with a double to right on the first pitch he saw, scoring Mike Noesen who pinch ran for Hill.  Ryan Scott followed with yet another double, also lining the first pitch he saw into the gap, scoring Carmody and tying the score 5-5 in the process.
 
The Cardinals were not finished either, plating three more runs in the top of the next inning on a RBI infield single off the bat of Qaude, before Mateja scored a pair with a single to right the following batter to give the Cardinals a 8-5 lead.
 
The Maroons did not go down without a fight however, rallying to score three runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning despite only recording one hit.  The first run of the inning scored on a bases loaded walk, while two sacrifice flies knotted the score yet again at eight apiece.
 
Both teams left a man on to end their halves of the seventh, before North Central once again rallied for a three spot in the top of the eight.  Quade singled with one out in the inning, before Mateja reached on an error and Sotiros was hit by a pitch to load the bases.  After a Maroon pitching change, Michael Namoff was also hit by a pitch, driving in Quade, while Colin Weilbacher followed with a two-RBI single to left, increasing the Cardinal lead 11-8.
 
Just like the sixth inning, the Maroons did not lay down, rebounding to score a run on a wild pitch and another on a safety squeeze bunt later in the inning to draw to within one, 11-10. 
 
Nick Rogalski induced a groundout to get out of the eighth, before working around a leadoff walk in the bottom of the ninth to earn his fourth save of the season.  Anthony Serafini earned the victory on the mound, tossing 1 2/3 of scoreless ball, striking out one while not allowing a hit.
 
Mateja finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI for North Central at the plate, while Quade also finished with three hits to go along with two runs and a RBI.  Zebrauskas and Scott each added a pair of hits on the afternoon, while Sotiros finished 1-for-3 with a hit by pitch, two runs scored and two RBI.
 
North Central returns to College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) play tomorrow, traveling to Carroll University with first pitch of the doubleheader slated for 1 p.m. at Frame Park Field.  Links to live in-game coverage are available HERE.