GAME STATS 1 | GAME STATS 2 Naperville, Ill. - The Thunder baseball team dropped a doubleheader at North Central College on Saturday afternoon. Wheaton lost game one by a score of 12-1 in seven innings and dropped game to by a score of 5-4 in 12 innings. With the losses Wheaton falls to 19-14 overall and 7-8 in conference play. North Central improves 23-5 overall and 11-4 in the CCIW. Wheaton will next be in action on Tuesday when the Thunder travel to Benedictine for a nonconference game starting at 6 PM.
 
Wheaton tallied one run on six hits with two errors in Saturday's lid lifter. The Thunder scored four runs on 13 hits with two errors in game two.
 
The visitors scored one run in the top of the first inning in both games of Saturday's doubleheader. Wheaton plated a run in the top of the first inning of game one on a sacrifice fly by Ben Brittain to score Nick Mailman. The Cardinals would answer with five runs in the bottom of the first inning and another three runs in the bottom of the second inning to take a commanding 8-1 lead in route to their 12-1 run-rule victory.
 
Andrew Laucella's RBI single scored Mailman to open the scoring in the nightcap. The Cardinals would take a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the second inning with a double followed by consecutive sacrifice flies. The Thunder closed the gap in the top of the fifth inning when Mailman singled home Brett Albaugh to cut the hosts' lead to one run.
 
In addition to a four-for-four day at the plate in game two, Mailman started a rally in the top of the eighth inning with a hit by pitch and moved to second base on a ground out. Mailman would score on an Andrew Laucella (PICTURED RIGHT) RBI single to tie the game at three.
 
Following a pitching change and a pinch runner, Kyle Mellinger doubled down the left field line to put two runners in scoring position with only one out. Consecutive groundouts would strand the potential go ahead runs and leave the game tied heading to the bottom of the eighth inning.
 
A one-out double opened a Cardinal rally in the bottom of the eighth inning. North Central would score the go-ahead run on an ensuing ground out when the throw from first to third base sailed high allowing the runner to score an unearned run.
 
Needing to score to extend the game in the top of the ninth, John McKenna let off the top of the ninth by reaching second base on a Cardinal error. McKenna would move to third base two batters later on a ground out and would come in to score when Nick Mailman ripped a two-strike triple into the right-center field gap. Following the triple, Wheaton appeared to take the lead when Josh Kimmel beat out an infield single to first base when the field umpire ruled that the pitcher's foot did not touch first base. That call would be overturned following an umpire conference sending the game tied at four into the bottom of the ninth inning.
 
North Central was able to put runners on the corners in the bottom of the ninth inning but that rally was brought to a stop when John McKenna started a double play to end the inning sending the game into extra innings.
 
Neither team threatened in the 10th or 11th inning before North Central started a rally in the bottom of the 12th with a one out error. Following a double Wheaton chose to issue an intentional walk to load the bases. The Cardinals were able to earn the walk off win with a sacrifice fly to right field to earn the 5-4 victory. Nick Johnson was the tough-luck pitcher of record for the Thunder allowing only four hits and two unearned runs over 4 2/3 innings of work. Christian Bolhuis started the game for the Thunder and went six innings, scattering six hits and allowing three runs while striking out six hitters in a no decision.
 
Nick Mailman and Andrew Laucella each drove in two runs apiece. Mailman paced the Thunder offense with a four-hit day while also scoring two runs in the second game. JD Carpenter also had two hits for Wheaton.