2017 CCIW Baseball Tournament Website

NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- Illinois Wesleyan freshman lefthander Jim O'Brien pitched a complete game four-hitter and got plenty of offensive support as the Titans posted an 11-0 win over Wheaton College before losing a 2-0 elimination game in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin tournament at Zimmerman Stadium in Naperville, Ill., on Friday, May 12.

The Titans are 21-20 while North Central improved to 23-16 and will face Augustana (30-12) for the conference tournament title at 12 p.m. Saturday, May 13.

GAME ONE: In pitching Illinois Wesleyan's second complete-game of the season, O'Brien improved to 3-1 as he allowed three singles, a double, walked two and struck out eight.

The Titans only scored the three innings but posted crooked numbers with three in the third and four in both the fifth and ninth innings. Illinois Wesleyan had 14 hits in the win, led by a four-hit effort from junior Gino Cavalieri, who had three doubles. Senior shortstop Jarrod Juskiewicz had two hits and drove home three runs and sophomore infielder Stephen Billington had three runs batted in with a bases-loaded double in a four-run fifth inning.

GAME TWO: The Titans, who had runners at second and third with nobody out in the last of the ninth and could not score, were limited to six singles by the Cardinals with two coming from sophomore Jonathan Broadbear.

In addition to O'Brien in game one, IWU got outstanding starting pitching from a second freshman in game two as righty Braden Miller (2-1) struck out six hitters and scattered seven hits, allowing one run in seven innings.

NOTES: Illinois Wesleyan had appeared in 14 straight College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin postseason baseball tournaments and 31 of 33 CCIW postseason baseball tournaments (missing the tourney only in 1993 and 2003).
After Friday's loss to North Central, Illinois Wesleyan has a 47-51 CCIW tournament record with six championships (1989, 2001, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2014).