CAROL STREAM, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan baseball team was limited to four runs on the day leading to a 5-2 and 8-2 loss at the hands of Wheaton at Lee Pfund Stadium in Carol Stream, Ill. on Saturday, May 2.
IWU dropped the season series vs the Thunder three games to none and end the regular season with a 24-14 overall record and sit at 12-9 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. Wheaton improved to 21-19 and 14-7 in the CCIW with both squads qualifying for next week's CCIW tournament.
The Titans never led in game one of the doubleheader as Wheaton took a 1-0 lead after three innings. IWU would tie the game in the top of the fourth on a
Jarrod Juskiewicz single to center field that brough home junior first baseman
Matthew Mardis.
Wheaton would retake the lead with a three-run bottom of the fourth inning before both teams would add single runs in the sixth. Juskiewicz went two-for-three with one run batted in and walked once. No other Titan had more than one hit in the game as Mardis, sophomore catcher
Pat Mollo, freshman third baseman
Gino Cavalieri and designated hitter
Jared Rubin had the other IWU hits in game one.
Illinois Wesleyan used four pitchers in the loss as senior
John Munyon (4-2) went five and one-third innings giving up five runs on eight hits to take the loss. Jonathon Vlk (1.2 innings),
Xander Horwitz (0.1 innings) and
Louis Acklin (0.2 innings) all saw time on the mound for IWU.
Game two looked much like game one for the Titans as the Thunder again took a 1-0 lead before IWU would respond and tie the game at one off a Cavalieri sacrifice fly to score Mardis. IWU's only other run of the game came in the top of the fourth inning when Juskiewicz blasted a solo home run to left field to give the Titans a brief 2-1 lead. Wheaton scored two runs in the fourth, three in the fifth, and tack on another two in the sixth to put the game out of reach.
Sophomore
Sean Coonan (3-2) took the loss in game two going three and one-third innings in relief of
Kyle Snedeker, who went only a third of an inning giving up one run on a hit and walking three.
What's Next?It will be another match-up against Wheaton as No. 3-seed Illinois Wesleyan will face the No. 2-seed Thunder at 3 p.m. Thursday, May 7, in the CCIW tournament to be held in Naperville and hosted by No. 1 seed North Central ... The Cardinals (25-14 overall, 16-5 CCIW) clinched the regular-season title this
weekend by taking two out of three games against Carthage. North Central and No. 4 Carthage (25-11, 12-9 CCIW) will square of in the opening first round game at 12 p.m. Thursday. Go here for the
CCIW tournament website.
NOTES: Illinois Wesleyan has won six CCIW tournament titles including last year as the No. 2-seed ... Previous CCIW tourney titles were in 1989, 2001, 2005, 2008, 2010 and 2014 and the Titans have qualified for 29 of the 31 held since the first in 1985 ... Illinois Wesleyan is 41-45 overall in previous CCIW tournament appearances after going 3-2 and winning the tournament last season... IWU is looking for a sixth straight appearance in the NCAA DIII tournament and 13th overall as the Titans have made nine appearances in the past 11 years in the national tournament, including winning the national Division III championship in 2010 ...
