AVON, Ohio – The Northern Illinois University baseball team lost 10-4 to the Ball State Cardinals at Sprenger Stadium Thursday night in the 2019 Mid-American Conference Baseball Championship. The Huskies will face the winner of Friday's game between Miami and Ohio at 1 p.m. CT.
"We just did not handle the ball well defensively," said head coach
Mike Kunigonis following NIU's first loss in the 2019 MAC Tournament. "Overall, we just kind of hurt ourselves defensively and with giving away free bases. It is what it is, and we just have to keep battling tomorrow."
NIU (19-35) got off to a fast start against the MAC Pitcher of the Year Drey Jamison.
Brendan Joyce (South Elgin, Ill./Parkland College) and
Tommy Szczasny (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way North) led off with back-to-back singles. Joyce got to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a
Dylan Lonteen (Peoria, Ill./Illinois Central College) sacrifice fly for the game's first run. Szczasny got to second on another Jameson wild pitch.
Jake Dunham (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) made the score 2-0 with an RBI double off the right field wall, scoring Szczasny. Jameson got out of the inning with consecutive strikeouts.
"I thought we had a great start," Kunigonis said. "We had a strong start offensively and did exactly what we wanted to do."
Ball State (37-17) responded with three runs in the bottom of the first off of NIU starting pitcher
Erik Hedmark (Algonquin, Ill./Dundee-Crown). Russ Messina drove in the leadoff man Aaron Simpson with an RBI double to make the score 2-1. After a foulout by John Ricotta, Chase Sebby drove in two runs with a double of his own to give the Cardinals a 3-2 lead. The Cardinals extended their lead in the second on a two-run double by William Baker to take a 5-2 advantage.
The Huskies got back within a run in the top of the third. Joyce drew a leadoff walk, then got to third on a one-out single by Lonteen who advanced to second on the throw from the outfield. NIU's leftfielder scored on a wild pitch from Jameson to make the score 5-3. After a Dunham walk,
Nick Drobushevich (Moline, Ill./Moline) reached on a fielder's choice that brought in Lonteen to put the score at 5-4.
Ryan Anderson (Palatine, Ill./McHenry CC) kept the deficit at one run. The junior came in from the NIU bullpen in the bottom of the third and threw two scoreless innings, striking out three.
Ball State extended its lead to 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth on a Griffin Hulecki sacrifice fly. NIU got some stellar infield defense in the sixth to keep the game 6-4. With a runners at the corners and one out, William Baker attempted a squeeze bunt. The Huskies' first baseman
Jordan Larson (Dodgeville, Wis./College of DuPage) charged the ball and flipped it to Dunham to tag out Noah Powell attempting to score on the play.
The Cardinals got some insurance in the bottom of the seventh when Powell launched a two-out, three-run home run to make the score 9-4. Ball State reliever Nick Floyd kept the Huskies at bay in the final three innings, striking out six while allowing one hit.
Anderson struck out five in 4.1 innings, allowing two runs on two hits with one walk. Joyce and Szczasny, NIU's top two men in the batting order, were a combined 5-for-8 at the plate Thursday night with three runs scored. Szczasny was 3-for-4 while Joyce was 2-for-4 with a walk.
"That's how it's supposed to be drawn up," said Kunigonis about the top of his batting order. "Those guys have two of the three-highest on-base percentages on the team, and it lines up with the next three RBI guys. It gives us an opportunity. It worked yesterday and today. We're right there. We just have to keep battling."
The Huskies will play in Friday's second scheduled game of the day, facing the winner of the first game between Miami and Ohio. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT with the game being broadcast on ESPN+.
--NIU--
