Baseball Wins One Against #7 UW-Oshkosh

DJ Rybski singled in two key runs in game one on Saturday (photo credit: Judith Rackow).
DJ Rybski singled in two key runs in game one on Saturday (photo credit: Judith Rackow).

CAROL STREAM, Ill. - The Illinois Tech baseball team (15-25, 6-18 WIAC) closed the 2018 season with a make-up conference series against WIAC opponent and the seventh-ranked team in the nation according to the latest d3baseball.com poll, UW-Oshkosh (31-8, 18-6 WIAC), on Friday and Saturday. Tech, the visiting team, lost twice on Friday before splitting a pair of Saturday games at Lee Pfund Stadium.

Runs-Hits-Errors: Game One (Friday)

  • Tech: 0 runs, 6 hits, 0 errors

  • UW-Oshkosh: 4 runs, 14 hits, 0 errors

How it Happened: Game One (Friday)

  • After Oshkosh jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first, the Titans added on in the third on a sacrifice fly to take an early 2-0 lead.

  • Tech did not record its first hit of the game until a Michael Courtney infield single in the fourth, as Titan starter Colan Treml retired the first nine Hawk hitters.

  • A pair of doubles to leadoff the fifth from Oshkosh's Zach Radde and Taylor Grimm gave the Titans another insurance run.

  • Tech's first chance to plate some runs was in the sixth, as David Navarro and Courtney led off with singles. However, the runners were stranded, ending the threat.

  • In the seventh, a one-out single by Andy Brahier capped off the scoring after a double by Grimm put a runner in scoring position.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts: Game One (Friday)

  • Courtney had two of Tech's four hits.

  • James Tarala didn't walk a single batter in seven innings of work.

  • Neal Shah threw a scoreless eighth inning.

Runs-Hits-Errors : Game Two (Friday)

  • Tech: 1 run, 2 hits, 2 errors

  • UW-Oshkosh: 6 runs, 10 hits, 1 error

How it Happened: Game Two (Friday)

  • After Ryan Cantlin retired the first five Oshkosh hitters, the Titans' next five batters reached base (four hits, one walk). An error on a stolen base attempt also helped give Oshkosh a 4-0 advantage after two.

  • Cantlin coasted throughout, but so did Oshkosh starter Nick McLees. He did not allow a hit until a Jacob Sorenson infield single in the seventh inning.

  • Tech would do more than just break up the no-hitter in the seventh. With one out, first baseman Ted Howell doubled to put runners on second and third. Left fielder Peter Upham drove Sorenson in on a groundout.

  • The Scarlet Hawks, however, would not get any additional hits in the ballgame, as McLees threw the second complete game of the day for the Titans.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts: Game Two (Friday)

  • Cantlin lasted 7.2 innings.

  • Howell recorded a double in the seventh.

  • Upham drove in Tech's lone run of the game.

Runs-Hits-Errors: Game One (Saturday)

  • Tech: 5 runs, 12 hits, 3 errors

  • UW-Oshkosh: 3 runs, 10 hits, 2 errors

How it Happened: Game One (Saturday)

  • The Scarlet Hawks struck first. After Upham singled and stole second base, shortstop Orlando Cardenas-Juan hit a two-out double to center field to give Tech a 1-0 lead in the second inning.

  • A single down the right field line by Oshkosh's Logan Reckert in the second allowed Brahier to score all the way from first to tie the score.

  • In the top of the fifth, the Scarlet Hawks broke the tie. Five straight hitters reached base to start the inning, with Navarro and Sorenson doing the damage on RBI singles.

  • Tech starter John Zalewski worked out of a big jam in the following half inning, getting a groundout to first and a lineout to right field with runners on second and third with one out, allowing the score to remain 3-1 Hawks.

  • After Oshkosh drew closer in the sixth on a sacrifice fly, Jacob Geiger came on in relief of Zalewski in the seventh and tossed a scoreless frame.

  • Tech increased the lead to 5-2 in the eighth inning. After a Howell double to lead off the inning, Nick Bledsoe walked with one out. Cardenas-Juan then moved the runners over with a groundball before second baseman DJ Rybski came up big, driving in both players with a single to right field.

  • The tying run came to the plate in the eighth against Geiger and the go-ahead run came to the plate in the ninth against Roberto Carselle. However, both pitchers held strong, giving Tech the 5-3 win against a nationally-ranked opponent.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts: Game One (Saturday)

  • Zalewski moved to 5-3 on the season with six innings of two run (one earned run) baseball.

  • Geiger threw two scoreless innings, striking out three.

  • Carselle earned his second save.

  • Courtney had three hits atop the Scarlet Hawks lineup.

  • Rybski (2-for-4, two RBI, run) and Cardenas-Juan (2-for-4, RBI, run, double) each had multi-hit games as well.

Runs-Hits-Errors: Game Two (Saturday)

  • Tech: 1 run, 3 hits, 1 error

  • UW-Oshkosh: 7 runs, 8 hits, 0 errors

How it Happened: Game Two (Saturday)

  • Ian Duke threw two scoreless innings to start the afternoon, but the Titans tagged him for two runs on just one hit in the third.

  • After a 44 minute rain delay following the bottom of the third inning, the Titans scored twice more in the fourth, this time on three hits.

  • As the Scarlet Hawk bullpen kept the Titans at bay, Tech had a run cross home in the seventh. Dickey singled in Nick Worden, who reached via the hit-by-pitch the batter prior.

  • The Titans picked up three insurance runs in the eighth, with the inning's big hit being a Sean Cummins two-run double.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts: Game Two (Saturday)