CHICAGO, Ill. - The Rockford University baseball team played a pair of non-conference games on Sunday at the University of Chicago Maroons. The Regents played very well winning both games and securing their first series sweep since late March. With the two wins Rockford moves its overall record back over .500 and builds some much needed momentum prior to a busy week of competition.
The Regents never trailed in the opener as Rockford scored a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. Center fielder Robert Smith (Bartlett, Ill.) led off the game with an infield single and then put himself into scoring position after stealing second base. It did not take long for Rockford to take the lead as Cole Logemann (Lena, Ill.) promptly drove in Smith with an RBI double into left center field. Two batters later senior Brian Wiest (Lake Zurich, Ill.) knocked in Logemann with his team-leading tenth double of the season putting Rockford out in front 2-0.
Chicago would then make it a 2-1 game with a solo run in the bottom of the fourth before the Regents added to their lead with two runs in the top of the sixth. This time it was Brian Wiest who began the rally as he led off the inning with a single back up the middle. Rockford then loaded the bases after a Bobby Barrera (Waukegan, Ill.) single and a Connor McHugh (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) walk. One batter later, pinch hitter Nick Naber (Rockford, Ill.) made it a 3-1 game when he singled into right field. Robert Smith drove in the final run of the inning with an RBI groundout to first base that scored Barrera.
The Maroons however would not go away without a fight. Chicago answered with a run in the bottom of the sixth and then two runs in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings.
Following a scoreless eighth and ninth, Rockford finally broke the tie with a run in the top of the tenth inning. Josh Cooper (Yorkville, Ill.) gave the Regents their first base runner of the inning when he drew a one-out walk. Cooper would then get himself into scoring position after advancing to third base on a pair of wild pitches. Following a Barrera walk, Jacob McKnight (Monroe Center, Ill.) dropped down a suicide squeeze to score Cooper and give the Regents a 5-4 win.
On the mound the Regents got excellent pitching performances out of starter Drew Walker (Morris, Ill.) and reliever David Camacho (Elk Grove, Ill.). Walker gave the Regents five strong innings allowing only 1 run on just 3 hits. Camacho tossed the final four innings surrendering one run on four hits while striking out six to pick up the win.
Game two was not as close as the Regents were in control the entire way scoring in every inning except one. Rockford jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead courtesy of a 4-run second inning. Andrew Hunt (Apple Valley, Calif.) and Eric Gnippe (Hinsdale, Ill.) led off with back-to-back singles to help jumpstart the big inning. The Regents then loaded the bases with a Kwynn Rury (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) walk before scoring their first run of the inning off a a Robert Smith walk. One batter later, Cole Logemann capped off the inning with a 3-run double into left center giving his team a 4-0 advantage.
The Regents added single runs in the third and fourth to make it a 6-2 game. In the third the Regents loaded the bases off an Andrew Hunt walk and back-to-back singles by Eric Gnippe and Seth Dascher (Lena, Ill.). Kwynn Rury then drove in Hunt making it a 5-0 Rockford lead. After Chicago scored two in the bottom half of the inning, Rockford got a run back in the top of the fourth. Connor McHugh and Mitchell Gorsuch (Cherry Valley, Ill.) strung together back-to-back hits before the Maroons balked in McHugh to put Rockford back on top by four.
The Rockford offense continued with its torrid hitting over the next few innings scoring three in the fifth and two in the seventh to put the game away. In the fifth it was an RBI walk by Cole Logemann followed by a 2-run Connor McHugh double that accounted for the Regents' three runs. In the seventh the Regents again took advantage of an RBI walk, this one from Britton Seivert (Rockford, Ill.) and an RBI groundout by Andrew Hunt en route to the 12-5 win.
Similar to the opener, Rockford got excellent pitching out its starter as well as from the bullpen. Freshman starter Taggart Venegas (Spring Valley, Ill.) went 5 strong innings allowing just two runs on four hits to earn his first collegiate win. Fellow freshman Tyler Joyce (Rochelle, Ill.) came in and closed the game throwing the final 1.1 innings. Joyce allowed no runs on just one hit and struck out one.
The Rockford University baseball team returns to action on Tuesday at Carthage College. First pitch of the game is set for 3 PM.
