Contact: Sam Fretto, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, sjfretto@noctrl.edu
NAPERVILLE, Ill. (Apr. 3, 2025)- The North Central College baseball team had their five-game winning streak snapped by the Elmhurst Bluejays, dropping a 15-10 shootout at Zimmerman Stadium on Thursday. The game was rescheduled and moved to Zimmerman Stadium due to weather and field conditions.
The Cardinals jumped on Elmhurst's starting pitcher Jack Krueger in the top of the first inning after
Henry Saul led off with a double down the left field line and
Jackson Bland plated him with an RBI double to gain the 1-0 advantage. Brian Duvall ran into trouble in the bottom of the first, surrendering five straight singles with three runs coming across to make it 3-1 Bluejays.
The Cardinals scored six unanswered runs, with one run coming in the top of the second as
Justin Lang advanced home on a wild pitch. Three scored the third as Bland advanced home on an RBI walk by Lang.
Peyton Burgh came home after
Joe Hamilton reached base on a fielding error at third base, and
Caleb Coberley put the Cardinals up 5-3 after advancing home on a passed ball.
North Central held a 7-3 lead going into the bottom of the fourth after a Bland RBI single brought home Saul, and
Austin Wienke singled to center to plate
John Michael Scumaci. Elmhurst regained the momentum, loading the bases and knocking Duvall out of the game for
David Anderson. Two walks and two singles plated five to cap off the fourth inning to make it 8-7 Bluejays.
The lead changed hands once again in the fifth inning after a Saul RBI single brought Lang home and
Yuhki Yamada scored on a wild pitch to give North Central the 9-8 lead. The lead was short-lived as the Bluejays offense tacked on three more in the bottom half of the fifth behind a leadoff double and three singles as the Cardinals trailed 11-9.
After the Cardinals got retired in order in the top of the sixth inning,
Ryan Gerdes entered the game to preserve the score, as he retired three batters with a popup, flyout, and groundout to keep the Bluejays at bay.
Hamilton tagged up to score after a Scumaci sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh to make it 11-10 Elmhurst. The Blue Jays had a response in the bottom of the seventh with a three-run frame after two singles, an error, and a double put the game out of reach for the Cardinals, 14-10. Elmhurst added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth to put the finishing touches on the game as North Central fell 15-10.
The Cardinals' offense saw eight of its' nine batters in the starting lineup register a hit, as the team recorded 14 hits, while six different Cardinals scored an RBI. Bland had a 3-for-5 day with two RBIs and one run scored as the Cardinals (8-12, 3-1 CCIW) dropped their first conference game of the season to the Bluejays (7-13, 1-1 CCIW).
Jaedin Kotecki was charged with the loss, going 1.2 innings and giving up 3 earned runs.
North Central hits the field tomorrow to begin a three-game weekend series against the Wheaton College Thunder. First pitch from Zimmerman Stadium is set for 5 p.m.
Download the free North Central Cardinals app, available for iOS and Android devices, to receive up-to-the-minute news, scores and updates on your favorite North Central teams. Click HERE for more information.
