Carol Stream, Ill. - Missed opportunities plagued the Thunder on Tuesday night as the Wheaton baseball team fell to Carthage 5-3. The loss drops Wheaton back to the .500 mark overall with a record of 13-13 overall and 4-7 in the CCIW. Carthage, ranked 19th in the latest ABCA Top 25, improved to 22-5 and 9-1 in the CCIW. Wheaton will continue CCIW play on Wednesday night with the final game of a three-game series against North Central, beginning at 6 pm.

Playing as the visitors despite the game being played at Lee Pfund Stadium, Wheaton tallied three runs on eight hits and made one defensive error. Carthage scored its five runs on 10 hits with one error. Ty Hoeksema took the loss for the Thunder, surrendering three runs in two innings of work. Nate Odahl improved to 5-0 for the Red Men, scattering five hits over six innings and allowing just one run.

Carthage used a two-out rally in the bottom of the first inning to take a lead it would never relinquish. A two-out triple started the rally with the big blow coming two batters later on a two-run double by Vince Schwartz.

Wheaton was able to put together a quick answer in the top of the second when Evan Ogden led off with a trip to right-center field and scored when Joel Pierce lifted a sacrifice fly to left field, cutting the lead to 3-1.

The Thunder offense threatened again in each of the next two innings, but could not break through with the big hit needed to chip into the Carthage lead. After Graham Core was gunned down at the plate in the top of the third inning for the second out of the inning, Wheaton proceeded to load the bases, but a groundout ended the inning. Pierce led off the the top of the fourth with a double and the Thunder put runners on second and third with just one out but Odahl was able to work out of trouble again to keep the score at 4-1.

Carthage took advantage of Wheaton's only error in the top of the fifth to add an unearned run and tacked on an additional run with a two-out triple in the top of the sixth inning to lead 5-1. Wheaton would threaten again in the top of the seventh inning, pushing runs across on a Ben Brittain sacrifice fly and a wide pitch that brought home Nick Mailman, cutting the lead to 5-3. Wheaton could get no closer as the Thunder stranded two more runners as the inning ended.

Joel Pierce led the Thunder the offense with two hits and a run driven in. Graham Core also added two hits and scored a run.