Chicago, Ill - Connor Blake smacked a walk-off RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the tenth inning in game two of their double-header versus Marian University, giving Illinois Tech baseball a 9-8 victory and providing the Scarlet Hawks with a sweep of their two-game set with the Sabres. The Scarlet Hawks won game one 8-3. The victories were the Scarlet Hawks first in conference play, improving their NACC record to 2-7 (6-18 overall). The Sabres fell to 3-7 in NACC play, and 7-13 overall.
Alejandro Garcia (1-2) earned the win for the Hawks, pitching a scorless frame in the top of the tenth inning, striking out two.
The Hawks trailed 8-2 entering the bottom of the eighth inning before the offense started chipping away. A Blake triple to lead off the eighth ended the day for Sabres' starter Logan Lange, who had danced around some wildness to hold the Hawks in check most of the day. An error by Sabres shortstop Robbie Knorr on a Michael Paxson grounder allowed Blake to score to cut the Hawks deficit to 8-3.
The Hawks resumed their comeback in the bottom of the ninth with a pair of one-out walks from Peyton Vieluf and Brandon Holifield. After a wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third, Samuel Sproule followed with an RBI single, scoring Vieluf. Consecutive RBI singles from Blake and Brandon Bennitt pulled the Hawks within two at 8-6. A two-out double from Matthew Jackson plated Blake and Bennitt and sent the game into extra-innings tied at 8-8.
The Sabres strung together a pair of two-out singles in the top half of the tenth inning, but they were unable to capitalize. In the bottom half of the tenth, Michael Lindenmuth, who entered as a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the seventh inning, opened the inning with a base hit. A wild pitch by the Sabres Mac Doherty moved Lindenmuth into scoring position at second base. After a pair of infield popouts, Blake stepped to the plate and delivered the extra-inning dramatic finish.
In the opener, Austin Richardson (2-1) pitched six innings for the win, allowing two runs, four hits, two walks while striking out five in the Scarlet Hawks 8-3 victory. The top half of the batting order provided the Hawks with all the offense they needed, as Bennitt, Jackson and Michael Paxson (seventh home run) each drove in a pair of runs. The top five batters in the Scarlet Hawks lineup combined to go 10/22 with seven RBI and eight runs scored.
Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks will be idle on Easter Sunday, but on Monday afternoon they will make the short journey to River Forest, Illinois for a double-header at Concordia Chicago. The first game starts at noon CT.