Rock Island, Ill. -- Eight days after hosting the Augustana Vikings in the first game of their regular season series, the Thunder baseball team hit the road for the return leg, traveling to Rock Island on Wednesday evening for a single game. The home side led early on, but Wheaton scored four runs in the fifth inning of tonight's contest to seize the advantage and eventually closed out a 6-2 victory to earn a split with Augustana. The result moves Wheaton to an even 5-5 mark in CCIW play and 12-17 overall, while the Vikings drop to 15-13 and 4-6 in conference action.
The two teams combined for just 14 hits in Wednesday's defensive contest, all but one of which were singles. Augustana committed the lone error of the game in the first inning, while both teams drew five walks and stole one base. Additionally, four Thunder batters were hit by a pitch, while Augie benefited from only one hit by pitch situation. The visitors left seven runners on base tonight, while the Vikings stranded 11.
The home side managed to get a runner in scoring position in their first batting series, but Wheaton ended the inning with two players left on to keep the game scoreless. Augie would open the scoring in the second frame, however, with a RBI single before the Thunder got the third out with another runner at third base waiting to come home. The guests finally registered their first hit of the night in the top of the fourth, but the Rock Island side kept them off the board and doubled its lead with another RBI single following a double down the line and sacrifice bunt play.
But Wheaton's bats came alive in the following frame and turned the game on its head.
Will Clegg ripped a single through the right side of Augie's formation and was promptly sent to third base after a hit-by-pitch and a walk. The freshman then put the Thunder on the scoreboard thanks to fellow first-year
Sean Dmytrowicz's own single through the right side.
Payton McClowry tied the game at 2-2 via a fielder's choice in the next at bat, before
Jack Gill (pictured right) completed the turnaround with a clutch two-RBI single into center field that scored
Luke Hamm and
Noah Yi.
Billy Kessler then entered the game for Wheaton in the bottom half and prevented Augustana from mounting a comeback of its own with a sparkling five-inning appearance on the mound. The rookie reliever allowed just two hits over the last five frames to help his team stay in front and successfully close out the road win. The Thunder added two more runs for good measure in the eighth and ninth innings from a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk that confirmed the contest's final score.
Kessler's win on the mound is the first of his young college career, with the freshman tallying two strikeouts, allowing zero runs, and walking just one of the 17 batters he faced. Starting pitcher
David Levengood threw for four innings and also collected a pair of strikeouts while conceding only two runs.
Gill, Clegg, and Yi all contributed one hit and one run this evening, with the former posting a team-high two RBI from his pivotal fifth-inning single. Yi tallied one RBI and stole Wheaton's only base, while
Braden Engel and Dmytrowicz chipped in with one hit and one RBI each. McClowry was the only player in Wednesday's matchup to reach home plate on two occasions.
The Thunder will travel again on Friday, as the team heads to Illinois Wesleyan University for the opening matchup of the sides' three-game weekend series. First pitch is set for 6 PM in Bloomington, before the squads meet in the reverse doubleheader at Lee Pfund Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
