CHICAGO, Ill. -- North Park baseball took an early and never let Elmhurst fully climb back, bending but not breaking thanks to big innings in the third, sixth, and eighth to pull away in a 14-6 win over the Bluejays.
After two quiet frames, North Park struck first in the third. Freshman second baseman Reyn Ikenaga jump-started the inning with a leadoff double, and a string of singles followed from senior thidr baseman Eli Johnson, junior left fielder Rylan Li, and senior center fielder Joe Perona to plate the first two runs. Sophomore first baseman John Greenwood and junior catcher Reyn Matsuzaki each delivered RBI singles as the Vikings sent 11 hitters to the plate and built a 5-0 lead before the scoring slowed.
Elmhurst answered in the sixth when Brett Vercruysse led off with a solo home run to right-center for the Bluejays' first run of the day. Javier Cervantes added pressure moments later with his second double of the game in the same left-center gap, but North Park starter Jason Schmierer limited the damage and kept the Vikings ahead by four.
The Vikings answered immediately in the bottom half of the sixth. Walks and a throwing error loaded the bases, and Matsuzaki came through again with a two-run single to left as North Park was knocking on the door of a short-game win.
However, Elmhurst's offense sparked in the eighth, taking advantage of free passes and a wild pitch. Four walks, a hit batter, and a pair of run-scoring outs helped the Bluejays score five times and briefly cut into the NPU lead.
Any remaining momentum was erased in the bottom of the eighth. Matsuzaki singled and sophomore right fielder Vinnie Marvucic tripled home a run to mark his first collegiate three-bagger.
Next, Kawakami delivered the decisive swing with a two-run homer to right-center as North Park got its swagger back.
The Vikings added two more runs in the frame to seal the win before closing out the ninth. Senior late-inning arm Ethan Condit steadied a rocky evening from the NPU bullpen to pick up his 7th save of 2026 and the 14th of his career, tying a pair of North Park records.
Matsuzaki and Johnson each collected three hits for North Park, anchoring an offense that produced 14 hits and drew seven walks. Cervantes paced Elmhurst with a pair of doubles.
Top Performers
North Park
Elmhurst
- Javier Cervantes: 2-for-4, 2 doubles
- Brett Vercruysse: HR, 2 RBI
- Adan Nieves: 2 hits, 2 walks
- Connor Drowns: RBI, reached base twice
What's Next?
North Park (20-12, 9-4 CCIW) hosts current conference leader in 27th-ranked Millikin (26-8, 12-5) for a doubleheader in Chicago on Saturday, April 25. First pitch for game one is set for 1:00 PM CT.
