MOLINE, Ill. – The Augustana Vikings baseball team returns home on Tuesday, April 18 for their final regular season-meeting with the Elmhurst Bluejays.
The Vikings hold a 22-6 overall record, 7-2 in conference, and most recently completed a series sweep of the Carthage Firebirds by an 8-7 score on Saturday, April 15. The Vikings fell behind 3-0 after the opening inning but responded in the third to knot the game at 3-3. Carthage added a score in the bottom of the third to go up one, but Augustana plated three more runs in the top of the fourth to seize a 6-4 advantage. The two-run edge stood until the Firebirds found the equalizer in the seventh. Neither team scored a run in the eighth inning, but a two-run surge from the Vikings in the top of the ninth put the game in sudden death territory for Carthage. The Firebirds nabbed one score in the bottom of the inning, though their comeback attempt was snuffed out with three straight strikeouts from Addison Southwick to earn the Vikings the road victory.
Augie secured 13 hits in the back-and-forth battle, with Alex Simon leading the way with three. Three other Vikings posted multi-hit efforts, including Kyle Campbell, who paced the team in RBI with three. Jacob Reusch entered the game in relief in the first inning, tossing 6.1 innings and striking out six batters.
Elmhurst enters Tuesday's game with a 12-13 record, 4-5 in conference, with their latest action resulting in an 11-3 win over Illinois Wesleyan at home. The Titans held a 1-0 edge through the top of the fourth before Elmhurst burst for two runs in the fourth and three in the fifth to go ahead 5-1. Illinois Wesleyan answered with two runs in the top of the sixth, but the Bluejays' back-to-back three-run innings gave them an 11-3 lead after seven innings, a score that held up for the remainder of the game. The Bluejays mashed 11 hits, led by shortstop Drew Raspolich with three.
Augustana holds a 92-58 edge over Elmhurst in the all-time series, extending their winning streak to eight against the Bluejays with a 7-1 road win on April 2. The Vikings built a five-run cushion through the top of the fourth inning before the Bluejays replied with a lone run in the bottom of the frame to make the score 5-1. Augie plated two additional scores in the sixth to put the game at 7-1, with Harrison Boushele and Reusch combining to hold the Bluejays scoreless through the remainder of the contest. Boushele pitched eight complete innings, allowing just three hits and striking out 12. Chase Maifield led the Vikings with three hits, while Cole Green and Campbell had two.
The conference battle begins at 7:00 p.m. from Swanson Stadium. Stream link can be found here.
