CHICAGO, Ill. – Augustana scored two runs in the top of the ninth Saturday to win the opener of a doubleheader with North Park 5-4, then exploded for 14 unanswered runs on its way to a 17-9 win in the nightcap at the Holmgren Complex. Coach
Greg Wallace's club improved to 12-2 on the season and 4-2 in the CCIW, while NPU fell to 6-6 overall and 1-6 in the league. The teams will play a single game at Swanson Stadium/Brunner Field on Sunday, March 28, with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
AUGUSTANA 5, NORTH PARK 4
Augustana trailed 4-3 going to the ninth in the opener.
Jaden Dellitt (Mercer County HS, Aledo, Ill.) singled to right center leading off and moved to second on a
Zachary Vrbancic (Stagg HS, Palos Hills, Ill.) sacrifice.
Jacob Barker (Windsor HS, Severance, Colo.) followed with a double down the left field line, scoring pinch-runner
Michael Gattuso (St. Charles North HS, St. Charles, Ill.) with the tying run.
Alex Simon (Hinsdale Central HS, Naperville, Ill.) then reached on an error, with Barker coming home with the go-ahead run.
Wallace called on
John Hayes (Cherry Creek HS, Greenwood Village, Colo.) in the bottom of the ninth and the Viking closer pitched around a two-out walk to earn his third save of the season.
Starters
Matt Hoban (Monarch HS, Westminster, Colo.) and Ethan Sund put up goose eggs for three innings before back-to-back doubles by
Griffen Pschigoda (Wheaton Warrenville South HS, Wheaton, Ill.) and
Kyle Wise (Geneseo HS, Geneseo, Ill.) in the fourth gave the guests a 1-0 lead.
North Park took the lead on a two-run double by Richie Silva in the fifth and added a run in the sixth to go up 3-1. Augustana tied it with a pair of bases loaded walks in the top of the seventh before NPU went up 4-3 with a run in the bottom half.
Josh Wintroub (Heritage HS, Littleton, Colo.) (2-0) fanned three in 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief and earned the win. Reliver Justin Woolbright (1-2) took the loss. Barker had a pair of hits.
AUGUSTANA 17, NORTH PARK 9
North Park was coasting along with a 6-3 lead heading to the bottom of the seventh in the nightcap. Brendan Russ retired the first batter, but Barker singled to start a 10-run avalanche. The first two runs scored on bases-loaded walks. Wise singled in the tying run and
Brett Benedetti's (Cherry Creek HS, Greenwood Village, Colo.) fielder's choice grounder plated the go-ahead run.
Dellitt added a two-run single, Simon was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and
Mitchell Owens (Moline HS, Moline, Ill.) finished off the frame with a three-run double to the gap in right center.
Vrbancic had an RBI single in the eighth before Simon blasted his first collegiate homer, a three-run shot to right, to make it 17-6. North Park plated three in the bottom half to account for the final.
Barker led off the game with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly by Owens. Augustana added two in the fourth on Benedetti's two run-single. Meanwhile NPU touched starter
Harrison Boushele (Grandview HS, Aurora, Colo.) for three runs in the first and three more in the fourth.
Jacob Irwin (Hersey HS, Arlington Heights, Ill.), who threw an inning and a third of scoreless relief, picked up his second win in as many decisions. Julian Ledezma (1-1) suffered the loss.
Owens finished 2-for-2 with two runs scored and four knocked in. Barker was 2-for-4 and scored four times and Benedetti was 2-for-4 with three driven in. Simon finished with three runs and four RBI.
