EVANSVILLE, IN – The Northern Illinois University baseball team led 4-1 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning Friday in its season opener against the Evansville Purple Aces at German American Bank Field, only to see Evansville score four runs and walk off with a 5-4 win.
 
"It was a tough ending to an otherwise overall good team effort," said head coach Mike Kunigonis. "We saw some good things out of a lot of guys and saw some things we need to get better at.
 
NIU (0-1) broke a 1-1 tie in the top of the seventh. Nick Drobushevich (Moline, Ill./Moline) led off with a single up the middle. After a strikeout, Brendan Joyce (South Elgin, Ill./Parkland College) singled to right field but Evansville right fielder Adam Euler threw out Drobushevich at second base for the second out. Brady Huebbe (Peru, Ill./Illinois Valley CC) then stepped up to the plate and socked a two-run home run to put the Huskies ahead 3-1. Paul Turelli (Lake Forest, Ill./Heartland CC) then came in from the bullpen and struck out the side in both the seventh and eighth innings to keep NIU in front.
 
Huebbe gave NIU an insurance run in the top of the ninth. With Drobushevich at third after a leadoff triple and two outs, the redshirt-junior doubled to left center to drive in his third run of the game and make the score 4-1. Huebbe and Drobushevich each had three hits in the game.
 
Sophomore Brandon McPherson (Chicago, Ill./Wabash Valley Col.) came on to close out the game for the Huskies. Simon Scherry led off the inning with a single and got to second base after a Kenton Crews walk. McPherson then struck out Robbie Wilkes, but a wild pitch allowed Wilkes to reach first base and Scherry to score which made the score 4-2. After McPherson recorded his second strikeout, Craig Shepherd singled to right field to bring in Crews and get Evansville within a run, 4-3. Tanner Craig then delivered a two-run double to give the Purple Aces the 5-4 win.
 
NIU (0-1) opened the scoring in the top of the third. Drobushevich (Moline, Ill./Moline) led off with a single, then advanced to second base after Matt Barnes (Bloomington, Ill./Heartland CC) was hit by a Shane Gray pitch. With two outs Jake Dunham (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) laced a single to right center, bringing Drobushevich around to score to give the Huskies' a 1-0 lead. The Purple Aces got the run back in the bottom half of the inning on a two-out RBI double from Craig.
 
Evansville's (1-0) run in the third was the only run allowed by NIU starting pitcher Michael Lasiewicz (McHenry, Ill./McHenry). The junior right-hander allowed just three hits in six innings with four walks and four strikeouts. Turelli had six strikeouts in his two innings of work.
 
"Lasiewicz gave us a great outing today, and Turelli was fantastic behind him," Kunigonis said. "Brandon gave up a couple tough hits and battled. We're a good team and will only continue to get better with every chance we have to step on the field."
 
The two teams continue their weekend series Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
--NIU--