Box Score 1 | Box Score 2  / Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score


Romeoville, Ill. – Lewis University junior Kyle Kapka (Mount Prospect, Ill./Prospect) (Mount Prospect, Ill./Prospect) hit a sacrifice fly to score junior Drew Buddle (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) in the bottom of the seventh to help the Flyers capture the game two 7-6 victory to complete the doubleheader sweep of McKendree on Friday (March 29) at Brennan Field. The Flyers defeated the Bearcats 7-1 in the series opener.
 
With the two victories, the Flyers improve to 12-3 on the season and to 6-1 in conference play to stay atop the Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division. The Bearcats fall to 11-7 on the year and 6-4 in league play.
 
“I was a hard fought doubleheader,” Lewis head baseball coach Tim McDonough said. “You have to credit McKendree. They battled, scrapped and had a never-say-die attitude to tied it up in game two. We did a good job of keeping our head about ourselves and got the win.”
 
In the top half of the seventh inning of the nightcap, McKendree tied up the game at 6-all when they scored five runs on five hits and one Lewis error. The Bearcats' Kyle Rutledge and Jake Kline each hit a two-RBI double while Jeff Tolliver batted in one run with a double of his own.
 
Both teams scored a run in the first inning. The Flyers broke the tie in the fourth when junior Ben Albano (West Dundee, Ill./Jacobs) (West Dundee, Ill./Jacobs) scored a run on a hit and two Bearcat errors. Senior Zach Stetson (Kankakee, Ill./Herscher) (Kankakee, Ill./Herscher) scored a run in the fifth inning on one hit and one McKendree error to go up two runs.
 
The Flyers scored three more runs in the sixth with two runs coming on redshirt junior Kyle Thomas (Homer Glen, Ill./Providence Catholic)' (Homer Glen, Ill./Providence Catholic) first homerun of the season. Sophomore Anthony Baldassano (Woodridge, Ill./Nazareth) (Woodridge, Ill./Nazareth) scored on fellow sophomore Mike Barajas (Chicago, Ill./Nazareth)' (Chicago, Ill./Nazareth) sacrifice fly later in the inning.
 
Lewis senior Derek Thomas (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Kennedy) (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Kennedy) (2-1) earned the win, throwing two-thirds of the seventh inning, giving up one hit and striking out one. Senior Matt Frahm (McLean, Ill./Olympia) (McLean, Ill./Olympia) threw 6.1 innings, giving up four runs on six hits, striking out five and walking two.
 
In game one, Lewis jumped out to a 4-0 lead through five innings of play. Albano picked up a RBI double in the first inning for the Flyers first run. With one out and two on in the bottom of the fifth inning, senior Michael Schroeder (Crown Point, Ind./North Newton) (Crown Point, Ind./North Newton) doubled in Buddle and junior Jake Murray (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove North) (Downers Grove, Ill./Moraine Valley C.C.). Senior Brian Norwood (Medinah, Ill./Lake Park) (Medinah, Ill./Lake Park) batted in Schroeder on an infield single and an error.
 
The Bearcats pushed a run across in the top of the sixth inning on a base hit and three walks.
 
Murray scored Buddle in the sixth with a RBI double while Norwood hit a two-run homerun and scored Kapka in the seventh to push the lead to 7-1.
 
Junior Tom Helwich (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln Way Central) (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln Way Central) (4-1) earned the win in a seven-inning pitching performance. He allowed one run on three hits, matching a season-high strike out of eight and walking six. Sophomore Dylan Cysewski (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) (Crystal Lake, Ill./Crystal Lake Central) (1) picked up his first save of the season with two innings of work, walking and striking out one.
 
The Flyers and the Bearcats return to Brennan Field on Saturday (March 30) to wrap up the four-game series with a doubleheader beginning at 12 PM.