DeKALB, IL – The Northern Illinois University baseball team dropped both games of its seven-inning doubleheader with the Central Michigan Chippewas Saturday at Ralph McKinzie Field by scores of 2-1 and 17-6.
Central Michigan (13-8, 5-2 MAC) took a 2-0 lead in the second inning of game one on a two-out Mario Camilletti RBI single and an errant throw on a double steal that allowed Justin Simpson to score from third. NIU's starting pitcher
Brandon McPherson (Chicago, Ill./Wabash Valley College) did his best to keep the Chippewas to two runs, retiring the next nine batters he faced before allowing a two-out walk to Jakob Marsee in the fifth.
NIU (5-17, 4-7 MAC) put a run on the board in the top of the seventh. With the bases loaded and two out,
Matt Barnes (Bloomington, Ill./Heartland CC) reached on an infield single that scored
Jake Dunham (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) and made the score 2-1. However, Central Michigan closer Ian Leatherman was able to get the final out on a flyout to secure the win for the Chippewas.
McPherson allowed two unearned runs in 4.2 innings in game one, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out six.
Parker Kirkpatrick (Lawrence, Kan./Lawrence) allowed just one hit in 2.1 innings of relief.
"Brandon gave us a great tame one and we were one hit away from walking away with the win," said head coach
Mike Kunigonis. "Unfortunately, it didn't happen that way. We battled and gave ourselves a chance at the end."
The two teams traded two-run home runs early in game two, with
Dylan Lonteen (Peoria, Ill./Illinois Central College) tying the game in the bottom of the second with his second home run of the season. The Chippewas took back the lead in the top of the third on a three-run double off the bat of Garrett Navarra that made the score 5-2. Central Michigan led 6-3 when it scored six runs in the sixth and five more in the seventh to take a 17-3 lead. NIU scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh on a two-run pinch-hit double from
Jack Anderson (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) and a
Jacob Schroeder (Flossmoor, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor) sacrifice fly to make the final score 17-6.
"We just didn't take care of the little things in game two and CMU capitalized on that," Kunigonis said. "We need to be ready to bounce back tomorrow for game four."
NIU and Central Michigan wrap up their weekend series on Sunday at 12 p.m.
--NIU--
