Contact: Nicholas Osterloo, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

ADRIAN, Mich. (Mar. 17, 2024) - Playing their eighth game in nine days, the North Central College baseball team fell to No. 3 Baldwin Wallace University, 9-5 as both teams combined for 14 runs over the final three innings on Sunday afternoon.

Andrew Bollman worked out of a first-inning jam before settling in and keeping the Yellow Jackets off of the scoreboard for the first five innings of play. The Cardinal offense was also held in check with only two hits to that point in the game.

In the sixth, Baldwin Wallace broke the scoreless tie with a solo home run, forcing Bollman out of the game as the Yellow Jackets tacked on three runs in the frame. 

North Central's bats woke up in the top of the seventh as Peyton Burgh, Taylor Kujak, and Dave Fitzpatrick reached base to load the bases with nobody out. Burgh scored on a Yellow Jacket error before Kujak crossed home plate on a fielder's choice. Tying the game at 3-3, John Michael Scumaci hit an RBI single to left field to score Fitzpatrick. Following a Baldwin Wallace pitching change, Jackson Bland used a single to give North Central their first lead before Luke Lehnen drove in Scumaci on an RBI groundout to put the Cardinals on top, 5-3.

The Yellow Jackets responded in the bottom of the seventh with five runs of their own, on four hits, to retake the lead, 8-5.  

Burgh and Michael Davis walked, but the Cardinal offense came up empty in the eighth. Baldwin Wallace added a run in the bottom half of the eighth to increase their lead to 9-5.

North Central went down in order as the Yellow Jackets secured the 9-5 win.

Jackson Bland led the Cardinals with three hits while Scumaci scored and drove in a run in the seventh inning. Bollman threw five innings on the mound with two earned runs and five strikeouts. Gavin Gawronski took the loss with five earned runs in his 1.1 innings pitched.

North Central is back in action on Thursday with a 4 p.m. (ET) game on the road at DePauw University. The Cardinals have won the past three games over the Tigers, including an 8-2 win last season.

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