Ticker goes here
Press Releases
North Park takes two of three from No. 6 Augustana College
Apr 08, 2007
Press Release posted by North Park Permalink
CHICAGO, IL (April 7, 2007) – In a three-game conference match-up in Chicago, the North Park baseball team took two of three from No. 6 ranked Augustana College, splitting Friday's doubleheader before winning Saturday's matinee in exciting fashion. This is the first time NP has won two games against AC since 1994.
In Game 1, eleven batters came to the plate and eight scored as North Park overcame a 6-1deficit to upend Augustana 11-8. Augie jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first, added a pair in the third on Don Hansen’s home run, and three more in the fourth as Hansen cracked another round-tripper. The host Vikings pushed in one in the third as Frankie Green scored on Nick Marino’s base hit. The floodgates opened in the bottom of the fourth on two-run singles by Pat Zarilla, Brady Josephson, Dan O’Donnell and lone RBIs by Mike Kuta and Tyler Burback. North Park reliever Brad De Jong worked two innings and allowing two runs, but Steve Kleckler’s clutch relief performance shut the door on Augie and held on to a tenuous 9-8 lead. North Park added two big insurance runs in the bottom half of the frame on Tyler Burback’s two-run homer. Kleckler got out of a seventh-inning jam with a game-ending double play. De Jong earned his first victory of the season and Kleckler his second save.
In Game 2, North Park jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but Augustana shut down the Viking offense the rest of the way as the Rock Island Vikings came away with a 5-3 win. In the North Park first, Nick Marino, Jordan Higgins and Pete Sekalias drove in runs as the host Vikings sent nine men to the plate, scoring three times. Augustana chipped away at starter Andy Sherwood with two runs in the third and single tallies in the fourth, fifth (on Don Hansen’s third home run of the afternoon) and sixth. Evan Berns finished up on the mound for North Park with 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief of Andy Sherwood, who falls to 1-2 on the season.
Joe DiCristina turned in a gutsy performance on the mound, staving off a hard-hitting Augustana squad in an exciting 7-4 victory in Game 3 Saturday. The host Vikings pounded out 14 hits en route to their second win in as many days against Augustana. In the second inning, North Park jumped to a 2-0 lead on consecutive singles by Blake Boster, Dan O'Donnell and Pete Sekalias, followed by fielder's choices off the bats of Frankie Green and Pat Zarilla, gave DiCristina a 2-0 advantage. Augustana came back with three of their own in the top of the third. North Park regained the lead in the fifth on Tyler Burback's two-run homer, but the visitors tied the game with one run in the sixth. The big inning was in the seventh, as North Park mounted a three-run rally on hits by Mike Kuta, Burback, Boster, O'Donnell, Sekalias and a fielder's choice by Frankie Green. DiCristina was lifted in eighth with two outs and two on for reliever Kevin Polka, who induced a groundout to end the threat. With one out and one on in the ninth, Steve Kleckler was summoned from the bullpen to get the first batter on a fly out and the next on a strikeout to preserve the win for DiCristina (3-1) and earn his third save, all in CCIW action.
In Game 1, eleven batters came to the plate and eight scored as North Park overcame a 6-1deficit to upend Augustana 11-8. Augie jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first, added a pair in the third on Don Hansen’s home run, and three more in the fourth as Hansen cracked another round-tripper. The host Vikings pushed in one in the third as Frankie Green scored on Nick Marino’s base hit. The floodgates opened in the bottom of the fourth on two-run singles by Pat Zarilla, Brady Josephson, Dan O’Donnell and lone RBIs by Mike Kuta and Tyler Burback. North Park reliever Brad De Jong worked two innings and allowing two runs, but Steve Kleckler’s clutch relief performance shut the door on Augie and held on to a tenuous 9-8 lead. North Park added two big insurance runs in the bottom half of the frame on Tyler Burback’s two-run homer. Kleckler got out of a seventh-inning jam with a game-ending double play. De Jong earned his first victory of the season and Kleckler his second save.
In Game 2, North Park jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but Augustana shut down the Viking offense the rest of the way as the Rock Island Vikings came away with a 5-3 win. In the North Park first, Nick Marino, Jordan Higgins and Pete Sekalias drove in runs as the host Vikings sent nine men to the plate, scoring three times. Augustana chipped away at starter Andy Sherwood with two runs in the third and single tallies in the fourth, fifth (on Don Hansen’s third home run of the afternoon) and sixth. Evan Berns finished up on the mound for North Park with 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief of Andy Sherwood, who falls to 1-2 on the season.
Joe DiCristina turned in a gutsy performance on the mound, staving off a hard-hitting Augustana squad in an exciting 7-4 victory in Game 3 Saturday. The host Vikings pounded out 14 hits en route to their second win in as many days against Augustana. In the second inning, North Park jumped to a 2-0 lead on consecutive singles by Blake Boster, Dan O'Donnell and Pete Sekalias, followed by fielder's choices off the bats of Frankie Green and Pat Zarilla, gave DiCristina a 2-0 advantage. Augustana came back with three of their own in the top of the third. North Park regained the lead in the fifth on Tyler Burback's two-run homer, but the visitors tied the game with one run in the sixth. The big inning was in the seventh, as North Park mounted a three-run rally on hits by Mike Kuta, Burback, Boster, O'Donnell, Sekalias and a fielder's choice by Frankie Green. DiCristina was lifted in eighth with two outs and two on for reliever Kevin Polka, who induced a groundout to end the threat. With one out and one on in the ninth, Steve Kleckler was summoned from the bullpen to get the first batter on a fly out and the next on a strikeout to preserve the win for DiCristina (3-1) and earn his third save, all in CCIW action.