SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Lewis covered 20 innings of baseball with only three pitchers on Saturday (April 11) afternoon in the Flyers' sweep of a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader at Illinois Springfield. The Flyers won game one over UIS 5-2 and rallied in the nightcap 5-4 in 11 innings. 

Game One – Lewis 5, UIS 2 (HTML Box / PDF Box)
Senior Tom Helwich (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln Way Central) (2-3) won his second consecutive game with an eight-inning effort on the mound for the Flyers. He allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits with five strikeouts. Sophomore Sam Couch (Bolingbrook, Ill./Joliet Catholic) entered in the ninth to pick up the save.

UIS scored their only runs of the game in the third, making the score 3-2 following a three spot by the Flyers in the first inning. Lewis would go on to score a pair of insurance runs. Junior Austin Mastela (Homer Glen, Ill./Lockport) doubled in freshman Neal Tyrell (Minooka, Ill./Minooka) in the sixth. Freshman Ethan Bloom (Schaumburg, Ill./Hoffman Estates) doubled in Mastela in the ninth.

Mastela finished with three hits, two runs scored and one RBI.

Christopher Irwin (1-3) started for the Prairie Stars. He allowed four runs in six innings to pick up the loss.

Game Two – Lewis 5, UIS 4 (11 inn.) (HTML Box / PDF Box)
The Flyers took a 2-1 lead into the fifth but ran into trouble in the bottom half of the inning. The Prairie Stars had already tied the game at 2-2 when an error opened the door for two more UIS runs to score, making the score 4-2.

The UIS rally left Lewis with only two times to bat to rally in the seven-inning game. The Flyers stranded two runners in the sixth but capitalized in the seventh with the same opportunity. Following a pair of walks to start the inning, senior Kane Lombardo (Forest Park, Ill./Nazareth) bunted the runners into scoring position. Senior Mike Barajas (Chicago, Ill./Nazareth) singled to center to make the score 4-3. A groundout by Tyrell scored the fourth run to tie the game.

It stayed 4-4 until the 11^th when junior Cale Robinson (Weldon, Ill./Clinton) opened the inning with a home run to left field.

Couch worked around a leadoff double in the bottom of the 11^th for his second save of the day and third of the season. He finished the job initiated by Lewis starter Eann Cox (Erie, Ill./Erie). The senior went 10 innings, allowing four runs (two earned) for the win. He is 5-2. He finished the game strong, keeping UIS off the board in the 10^th after the Prairie Stars put runners at the corners with one out

"Offensively, we got some big hits when we needed them," Lewis head coach Tim McDonough said. "Game two felt like it was going to take a home run to end it and Cale put a great swing on the pitch and came up big for us."

Cox's 10.0 inning outing is the first for a Flyer since 2003. Matt Petrusek threw 10.0 innings twice in 2003.

"Tom and Eann both gave us huge efforts today and set a tone in both games," McDonough said. "What can you say about Sam coming in and shutting the door twice in the same day. All three were great."

Barajas finished with four hits, one RBI and one run scored. Bloom and Tyrell each added two hits.

UIS reliever Richard England (1-3) suffered the loss after allowing three runs in 5.0 innings of work.

UIS falls to 15-18 (9-11 GLVC). Lewis improves to 13-16 (8-12 GLVC). The Prairie Stars and Flyers will faceoff again on Sunday in a GLVC doubleheader starting at noon.