CHICAGO, Ill. — The University of Dubuque used a five-run eighth inning to come from behind and defeat North Park, 7-6, Friday afternoon at Holmgren. North Park collected a dozen hits, but Dubuque outlasted the Vikings to hand NPU its first home loss of 2026.
Dubuque scored first in the top of the first after Ryan Turner and Alex Esser drew walks and moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. Will Sullivan then produced a sacrifice fly to left field to bring Turner home for a 1-0 lead. North Park answered in the bottom half when sophomore shortstop Taylor Joseph walked, junior catcher Reyn Matsuzaki singled down the left-field line and advanced on the throw, and sophomore right fielder Vinnie Marvucic drove in Joseph with a two-out single up the middle to tie the game, 1-1.
The Vikings took control in the second behind back-to-back solo home runs. Freshman third baseman Justin Butcher led off the inning with a shot to right-center, and senior center fielder Joe Perona later homered to right field to make it 3-1. Dubuque cut into the lead in the fifth when Justin Potts homered to right field as the game would come to a halt at 3-2 for the next few innings.
North Park sophomore left-hander LeBaron Lee, Jr. delivered a strong start, working six innings and allowing two runs on two hits while striking out four. Dubuque threatened at times with walks, but Lee limited hard contact and kept the Vikings in front through the middle innings.
North Park added three runs in the seventh to build a 6-2 cushion. Perona singled, stole second (which brings his career total to 98, tying the career record at NPU) and moved to third on sophomore second baseman Kupono Akaka's sacrifice bunt before Joseph doubled down the left-field line to score him. Next, Matsuzaki continued his hot stretch at the plate with a no-doubt, two-run homer to right-center to extend the lead.
Dubuque turned the game in the eighth. Vic Pico doubled to right-center and Turner doubled to left to open the inning, setting up Esser's RBI groundout that scored Pico and moved Turner to third. A walk and a wild pitch brought Turner home, and Dubuque continued to add runs during a sequence that included an infield throwing error and Tanner Simmons' RBI single up the middle. The five-run frame put Dubuque ahead 7-6 and reliever Matt Risser finished the comeback by holding North Park scoreless over the final two innings.
Top Peformers
North Park
- LeBaron Lee: 6.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 4 K
- Joe Perona: 3-for-5, 2 R, HR, RBI, SB… ties the career record at NPU
- Reyn Matsuzaki: 2-for-5, R, HR, RBI
- Taylor Joseph: 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 2B, BB
- Justin Butcher: First career HR, RBI
- Reyn Ikenaga: First Holmgren hit
Dubuque
- Ryan Turner — 2-for-4, 2 R, 2B, BB
- Justin Potts — HR, RBI, BB
- Vic Pico — 1-for-5, R, 2B
- Tanner Simmons — 1-for-1, RBI
- Matt Risser — 2.0 IP, 0 R, 2 K
What's Next?
North Park (16-9, 6-2 CCIW) concludes the series with Dubuque on the road tomorrow, April 11, at Dan W. Runkle Field. First pitch in Dubuque, Iowa is set for 1:00 PM CT.
