PICTURED ABOVE: Michael McCraith allowed one hit and struck out eight hitters in six innings of relief in Wheaton's 5-1 win over Northland on Friday.

Carol Stream, Ill. - The Thunder pitching staff enjoyed an outstanding day on Friday despite a doubleheader split by the Thunder baseball team. Wheaton allowed just eight hits and only one earned run while striking out 19 hitters in 18 innings of work.  Wheaton opened the day with a 5-1 victory over Northland College (1-7) before falling to Bethel University (14-3) in a 1-0 pitchers' duel. Wheaton is now 10-5 overall and will host Edgewood at 3 pm on Saturday to finish the weekend and conclude the non-conference portion of its schedule.

Wheaton did the majority of its damage in the top of the first inning against Northland, scoring four runs in the opening inning. Johnny Peltz brought home the first run with a bases loaded walk before Brett Albaugh ripped a two-run single to left field. Peter Newman's ground out served as the first out of the inning and brought home the fourth run of the inning.

Following the four-run first, pitching took over the game. Making his first career start, Alex Hanvey allowed a third inning run and surrendered two hits while striking out three. Wheaton threatened throughout the game, stranding at least one runner in every inning including two runners in the fifth and three in the sixth inning. The Thunder finally added an insurance run in the eighth inning when Andrew Zuber (PICTURED RIGHT) led off with an infield single and was replaced by pinch-runner Noah Ritchie. Ritchie quickly stole second base and came around to score on Jacob Zeller's single up the middle. 

Entering in the fourth inning, Michael McCraith earned the win for the Thunder, firing six innings of one-hit ball, walking one Lumberjack hitter and striking out eight to improve to 3-1 on the season.

With the weather changing drastically late in game one, the nightcap against Bethel brought about favorable conditions for pitchers. Wheaton's Christian Bolhuis and Bethel's Michael Willman traded zeros on the mound, each throwing six shutout innings. Bolhuis surrendered only three hits and struckout six Royals hitters.

Wheaton threatened to take the lead early in the game, using a single and two walks to load the bases in the bottom of the first inning but Willman was able to induce a groundout to end the inning. Bethel countered by putting runners on the corners with one out in the top of the second inning but Bolhuis was able to work out of the jam without further damage.

A double play erased a Peltz walk to leadoff the Thunder fourth inning. Bolhuis responded with an unassisted double play in the top of the fifth inning. Wheaton's best chance to score came in the bottom of the fifth when Clay Morrison led off the inning with a double to left field and was replaced by a pinch runner. Wheaton's initial rally was erased when its pinch runner was picked off but a two-out walk to Kyle Trivits and an infield single and an error off the bat of Nick Mailman put runners on second and third. Willman responded with a strikeout to end the threat.

Bethel again put runners on the corners with one out in the top of the sixth inning but Bolhuis closed his night with consecutive strikeouts, ending the inning. Wheaton also managed to put runners on the corners with one out in their half of the sixth inning, but with Albaugh running on the pitch, Peter Newman's line drive to second base turned into an easy inning-ending double play.

Bethel took advantage of two Thunder errors to score the game's only run in the top of the eighth inning and Jake Marsh slammed the door on the Thunder, retiring Wheaton's last six hitters in order to preserve the 1-0 victory.