FORT MYERS, Fla. – The baseball team opened its 2013 campaign with a single game against Mitchell College at the Player Development Complex on Sunday. The game quickly turned into a pitcher's duel for much of the afternoon as both offenses struggled to string hits together. The Regents however did strike when shortstop Joe Rigg (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) drove in the team's first run of the season off a single to left field in the fifth inning. After a sacrifice fly scored the second run, Daryn Streed (Belvidere, Ill./North) tripled in Rigg giving the Regents a 3-0 lead. Mitchell answered with single runs in the seventh and eighth innings making it a 3-2 game. Freshman Cole Logemann (Lena, Ill./Lena-Winslow) started the top of the ninth off by hammering a double off the wall in center field for his second double of the game. Catcher Terry Wiltshire (Elizabeth, Ill./River Ridge) followed Logemann's double with a hard hit single to right placing runners on first and third with no outs. After a walk, Rigg collected his second RBI of the game on a sacrifice fly to center field. Junior Bryan Grabowski (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) and senior Daryn Streed each knocked in an additional insurance run giving Rockford a 6-2 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth. Both runs turned out to be crucial as Mitchell mounted a rally scoring two runs and had two men on base when Rigg struck out the final batter of the game for a 6-4 victory and his first save of 2013.

Right-hander Kaleb Rich (Washington, Iowa/Washington) dazzled on the mound as the Regents opening day starter. Rich put in a strong 6.1 innings of work throwing 109 pitches while surrendering only 1 run on 1 hit with 4 strikeouts. The junior never really found himself in much trouble until the fourth inning when the Mariners loaded the bases off two Rockford errors. The Washington native dug deep and picked up his defense inducing an inning ending groundout to end the threat. Rich cruised until the top of the seventh when he left the game after recording one out. Jacob LeMay (DeKalb, Ill./DeKalb) and Joe Rigg closed out the game pitching the remaining 2.2 innings.

Offensively Rockford was led by a trio of players. Daryn Streed picked up right where he left off a season ago with a 2-5 performance including a triple and two runs batted in. Terry Wiltshire scorched the ball in nearly all of his at bats going 2-4 and scoring a run. Freshman Cole Logemann was impressive in his first collegiate game. Logemann went 3-4 with a pair of doubles and a run scored.

The baseball team returns to the field on Monday for a doubleheader against Gettysburg College at 10 a.m. Monday's games will be played at Terry Park in Fort Myers, Fla.