CHICAGO, Ill. -- The Vikings baseball team faced off with the Wheaton Thunder on Tuesday evening, taking down their CCIW foe 6-5 after 9 innings of back-and-forth ball. North Park moves to 3-6 in conference with the win while Wheaton drops to .500 at 6-6.
On the mound for NPU, freshman SP Ethan Condit had the best outing of his young career. Condit gave up two early runs—including a towering solo shot to Wheaton's Jacob Snyder—but he'd then settle in for the rest of the game to the tune of five scoreless frames in which he allowed just a single hit. His final line read 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 2 ER, and 7 K, though he'd win up with a no-decision.
North Park's bats supported Condit for four runs before his departure on the mound. In the bottom of the 1st, Reece Arakaki crossed the plate after he and Bobby Bartlett marked back-to-back singles to lead off the game for the Vikings. Then in in the 3rd, Graham Porter smacked a double into right-center to clear the bases and score Justin Swanson and Carlos Martinez. Porter again came through for NPU in the bottom half of Condit's final frame, putting the ball in play to lead to a Thunder error that brought Martinez home from first base.
In the top of the 8th, North Park's 4-2 lead turned into a 4-5 deficit. RP Frank Kalemba managed to limit the damage after entering the game in a one-out jam to give the Vikings a fair shot at the plate to take back the reigns, and the North Park offense delivered on the opportunity.
Bartlett led off the inning with a triple into the left-center gap before Justin Swanson followed him up with a walk to give NPU two baserunners with no outs. A failed pickoff attempt from Wheaton's pitcher allowed Bartlett to cross the plate and tie the game at 5-5, moving Swanson into scoring position. Carson Blatchford, who entered the game for Carlos Martinez as a defensive sub, then gave North Park the lead after another costly Wheaton error. He advanced up to third base but would not come around to score, setting up Kalemba for the chance to pick up the win in a 6-5 ballgame.
After getting a pop out and hitting a batter with a pitch, Kalemba generated two looking strikeouts to close out the game and secure North Park's 6-5 victory. Kalemba, getting the winning decision, finished with 1.2 IP and allowed just 1 H with 2 K.
Offensively, Reece Arakaki and Bobby Bartlett both reached base four times, with the former going 3-4 with a walk while Bartlett went 2-3 with 2 BB. Bartlett's triple and Graham Porter's double marked the team's XBH. Justin Swanson was the only other Viking to record a multi-hit game with a 2-3 performance that included a walk. He and Carlos Martinez led the team with 2 runs scored each.
What's Next?
The Vikings next take the field on Saturday, April 22nd for a Senior Day double-header against the Carthage Firebirds. First pitch is scheduled for noon at the Holmgren Athletic Complex.
