ELMHURST, Ill. — North Park Baseball clinched a berth in the 2026 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament on Wednesday evening, storming back from an early deficit to defeat Elmhurst University 13-8 at Butterfield Park. Every Viking starter reached base in the win and five players from NPU enjoyed multi-hit days while closer Ethan Condit became the standalone career saves leader.
Elmhurst struck first with a six-run bottom of the first inning. After Evan Johnson reached and moved into scoring position, Brett Vercruysse doubled to right field to open the scoring. The Bluejays continued to apply pressure with walks and hit batters, as Rock Smith was hit by a pitch to force in a run and Timothy O'Connell followed with an RBI single. Colin Adams added a sacrifice fly before Marty Fraga capped the inning with a two-run triple to center, giving Elmhurst an early 6-0 advantage.
North Park began chipping away in the third inning. Senior designated hitter Rylan Kawakami singled through the infield and advanced into scoring position on a pair of wild pitches, setting up senior center fielder Joe Perona's RBI single through the right side. Sophomore shortstop Taylor Joseph followed with a run-scoring hit to left, and sophomore first baseman John Greenwood added a sacrifice fly to bring the Vikings within striking distance at 6-3.
Elmhurst answered in the home half of the third when Adan Nieves singled through the left side to score Timothy O'Connell, pushing the lead back to four runs at 7-3.
The game turned decisively in the fourth as North Park erupted for five runs. After reaching base via batches of errors and walks, Kawakami drove in a run with a single to left. Junior left fielder Rylan Li worked a bases-loaded walk to plate another, and a wild pitch allowed the Vikings to creep closer. Perona lifted a sacrifice fly to score senior third baseman Eli Johnson, and Greenwood reached on a fielding error that allowed the tying run to score, evening the game at 7-7.
The Vikings took their first lead in the fifth inning. Sophomore second baseman Kupono Akaka doubled to right field, and sophomore right fielder Vinnie Marvucic followed by launching a two-run home run to right, putting the Blue & Gold ahead, 10-7. Elmhurst responded with an unearned run later in the frame, cutting the margin to 10-8.
From there, North Park's bullpen took control. The Vikings limited Elmhurst to just one hit over the final four innings, highlighted by senior closer Ethan Condit's three scoreless frames, during which he struck out five and allowed only one baserunner. This marked his eighth save of 2025 and puts hit as the standalone saves leader in program history at 15.
North Park added insurance in the ninth inning when Joseph delivered an RBI single to score Perona, Akaka followed with an RBI double to right, and Marvucic reached on an error that allowed the final run to cross and push the lead to final score of 13-8.
Top Performers
North Park
- Kupono Akaka: 3-for-6, 3 runs, 1 RBI, 2 doubles
- Joe Perona: 2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 RBI
- Taylor Joseph: 2-for-5, RBI, stolen base
- Vinnie Marvucic: Home run, 2 RBI
- Ethan Condit: 3.0 IP, 1 hit, 0 runs, 5 strikeouts, 15th career save
- Eli Johnson: 4 walks, 2 runs scored
Elmhurst
- Marty Fraga: 3-for-4, 2 RBI, double, triple
- Timothy O'Connell: 1-for-2, 3 runs, RBI, 3 walks
What's Next?
North Park (21-15, 10-7 CCIW) begins a three-game series with Illinois Wesleyan University (16-19, 10-7) in a battle for the bye and a second-place finish in conference play. The Vikings host game one of the series on Friday, May 1, inside the Holmgren Athletic Complex at 4:00 PM CT before playing a doubleheader at Horenberger Field on Saturday, May 2, to conclude the regular season.
