April 4, 2005

Box Score

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Sophomore Dan Schwartz pitched four innings of no-run relief and Anthony Wycklendt hit a two-run home run, propelling the Northwestern baseball team to an 8-7 victory over Indiana Monday afternoon. With the win, NU won three of the four games in Bloomington and improved to 12-9 overall, 3-1 in the Big Ten.

NU jumped on top of Indiana for the third straight game, plating two runs in the top of the second inning. Like they did all weekend, the Wildcats took advantage of a Hoosier overthrow to score their first run.

Designated hitter Max Mann (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood) led off the second with a single and moved to second base when Mike Phelps (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) drew a walk. Freshman Jake Owens (Stevens Point, Wis./Pacelli) followed with a slow roller to second that was thrown away, allowing Mann to score from second. Phelps crossed the plate on Aaron Newman's (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) sacrifice fly.

Indiana took their first lead in 17 innings, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second. IU took advantage of two hit batsmen and a walk, using two singles to score the runs.

Neither team found the scoring column until NU tied the game at 3-3 in the top of the fifth inning. Shortstop Jon Mikrut (Wauconda, Ill./Carmel) scored on a wild pitch after leading off the inning with a double down the left field line. He moved to third on a double play ball.

Indiana went back on top in the bottom of the fifth, using three straight singles to score the first run. After two outs, one of which was a barehanded groundout to Mikrut at shortstop, a three-run home run put IU ahead 7-3. Newman made a diving catch in the left center field gap to end the inning.

Senior Evan Blesoff (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park River Forest) started on the mound for NU, pitching five complete innings in the no decision.

Schwartz relieved Blesoff to start the sixth inning and retired the first seven IU hitters he faced before giving up a hit. Schwartz gave up only three hits in his four innings, walking none and striking out one. A day after earning his first collegiate save, Schwartz tallied his first collegiate win.

Down 7-3 and sporting a never-say-die attitude, NU stormed back in the seventh, tying the game at 7-7 in the seventh inning. Anthony Wycklendt (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet) capped the inning, hitting a towering opposite field two-run home run. Prior to Wycklendt's round-tripper, Mark Ori (Niles, Ill./Maine South) beat out an infield RBI single in which two runs crossed the plate. An errant throw allowed the second run to cross the plate.

With a runner on first and two outs in the bottom of the eighth, designated hitter Brad Udoff hit a groundball deep into the hole at shortstop. Mikrut fielded the ball in left field, jumped, and threw out Udoff at first. A split-leg catch by first baseman, Ori, helped the throw beat the Hoosier runner.

After making the defensive play of the game, Mikrut led off the ninth with a hard groundball through the left side of the infield. He was stranded on third with three groundball outs.

Indiana did have a hit in the ninth, but Schwartz induced two fly ball outs and a groundout to preserved the win.

NU is next in action when it hosts Penn State at Rocky Miller Park in Evanston this weekend. Game one of a four-game series is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. Friday.