By Jami Sponaugle

Chicago, Ill. - At Ed Glancy Field for the final time of the 2023 season, the Illinois Tech Scarlet Hawks baseball team welcomed the Concordia University Wisconsin Falcons for a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) double header on Friday. Friday's games were also marked as senior day for the Hawks.

The Hawks (19-17, 12-8) were able to secure two huge victories over the Falcons (20-15, 11-9). In game one Hawks, the Hawks won 8-5. Game two saw the Hawks come out hot as they eventually defeated the Falcons 14-4 in 8 innings. 

Senior Day - After game two, the Hawks honored their three seniors: Brandon Bennitt, Matthew Jackson, and Zac Lis. Congratulations to these seniors for their careers as Scarlet Hawks. Thank you for your contributions to Illinois Tech both on and off the field. 

Game One (Illinois Tech 8 - Concordia Wisconsin 5)

• Game one began as a pitching battle between the Hawks Austin Richarson and the Falcons Ryan Green. Both Richardson and Green were named to d3baseball.com Team of the Week for their performances during the week of Apr. 24-30. Neither side would allow a run through the first 4 innings. 

• The first run of the game came in favor of the Hawks in the bottom of the fifth. A Brandon Bennitt single brought in Matthew Bove to put the Hawks up 1-0. 

• In the top of the sixth, a Jimmy Juergensen 3-run home run gave the Falcons a 3-1 lead. 

• The Falcons added another run in the top of the seventh with a solo home run by Matt Miller to make it a 4-1 ballgame in favor of the Falcons. The Hawks would turn things around though in the bottom of the seventh to take the lead. The scoring began with a Bennitt double that brought in Michael Lindemuth. Then, with two outs, Tyler Gutsfeld scored off a wild pitch. Matthew Jackson then singled, bringing in Bennitt to tie the game at 4-4. A single by Samuel Sproule and an error on the Falcons allowed Jackson to score and gave the Hawks a 5-4 lead. 

• A second Juergensen home run tied the game at 5-5 in the top of the eighth. In the bottom of the eighth, the Hawks took back the lead. Bove scored off a Bennitt double to put the Hawks ahead. A 2-RBI single by Connor Blake brought in Bennitt and Gutsfeld to secure the 8-5 victory. 

Game Two (Illinois Tech 14 - Concordia Wisconsin 4 - 8 innings)

• With one out, back-to-back homers by Bennit and Jackson got the runs going for the Hawks in the bottom of the first. With two outs, a double by Vieluf brought in Sproule. Vieluf then scored on the next at-bat when Bove singled. At the end of the first, the Hawks led 4-0.

• Then, in the bottom of the second, Bennitt once again homered, this time bringing in Gutsfeld. With a runner on second and third, Michael Paxson slammed a 3-run homerun to put the Hawks ahead 9-0 at the end of the second inning. 

• A wild pitch allowed the Falcons to get their first run of the game in the top of the third. 

• During the fourth inning, Tristan Largent hit a 2-run home run. In the bottom of the inning, David Cooper singled to score Paxson. At the end of the fourth inning, the Hawks led 10-3. 

• Joshua Minami singled during the bottom of the sixth to score Bove and put the Hawks up 11-3. 

• In the top of the eighth inning, the Falcons scored an unearned run. The Hawks were able to close out the game in the bottom of the eighth. Hunter Venditti got the action going with a single that scored Paxson. Then, with bases loaded, Venditti was able to score as Minami was hit by the pitch. The game ended as Matthew Jackson was walked in a bases loaded situation, bringing in Lucas Waunn. The Hawks won game two by a final score of 14-4 in eight innings. 

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

Game One

• Brandon Bennitt went 3-for-5 with 2 doubles, 3 RBI's, and 2 runs.

• Tyler Gutsfeld went 1-for-4 with a double and 2 runs.

• Matthew Bove went 2-for-4 with a double, 2 runs, and a stolen base.

• Connor Blake with 1-for-4 with 2 RBI's. 

• Matthew Jackson went 2-for-5 with 1 RBI and 1 run.

• Alejandro Garcia earned the win on the mound. Garcia pitched 2 innings, faced 10 batters, and struck out 3.

Game Two

• Brandon Bennitt went 3-for-6 with 2 home runs, 3 RBI's, and 2 runs. 

• Matthew Jackson went 2-for-4 with a home run, 2 RBI's, and 2 runs. 

• Michael Paxson went 2-for-5 with a home run, 3 RBI's, 3 runs and a stolen base.

• Samuel Sproule went 2-for-4 with two doubles, 2 runs, and a stolen base. 

• Peyton Vieluf went 1-for-4 with a double, 1 RBI, and 1 run.

• Joshua Minami went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI's.

• Joseph Belflower earned the win on the mound. Belflower pitched 7 innings, faced 31 batters, and struck out 3. 

Falcons Standouts

Game One

• Jimmy Juergensen went 2-for-4 with 2 home runs, 4 RBI's, and 2 runs.

• Matt Miller went 1-for-4 with a homerun, 1 RBI, and 1 run.

• Johannes Haakenson went 1-for-3 with a double. 

Game Two

• Tristan Largent went 3-for-4 with a home run, 2 RBI's, and 1 run.

• Johannes Haakenson went 2-for-4 with a double, and 1 run. 

Head Coach Ed Zeifert's Comments

"What a great day for our seniors. On the field we found a way in game one and did what we needed to do in game two - but today it was very much senior-led. Brandon Bennett had so many big hits, Matthew Jackson the same - just unreal in big moments and Zac Lis doing his thing one more time at home, hanging a zero. 

Couple that with Austin Richardson and Connor Blake - guys that have been around and had to deal with some adversity today - great day to be a Scarlet Hawk!

I think we are all looking forward to the rest of the weekend and earning a trip to Mequon. We are close!" 

Up Next

The Hawks hit the road as they travel north to take on the Edgewood College Eagles (21-16, 13-9) in Verona, Wis. for a NACC double-header. Game one will begin at 1:00 PM with game two to follow. 

The Hawks currently sit in fourth in the NACC standings. The top six teams will make the postseason tournament.