GWC Gallery - Chicago State vs. NJIT
OREM, Utah - Senior Jonathan Carpen (Whiting, IN/Clark) (Whiting, Ind.) hit 2-of-5 with five RBI and hit a grand slam in the ninth inning to lead seventh-seeded Chicago State to an 11-7 victory over third-seeded NJIT today on the second day of the Great West Conference Tournament at Brent Brown Ballpark.
The win was the first in GWC Tournament play for the Green and White, and the first win in a conference tournament since advancing deep in the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament in 1999.
The Cougars (13-39) opened the game with a barrage in the first inning on NJIT starting pitcher Tripp Davis by scoring four runs for an early 4-0 advantage. Jonathan Carpen (Whiting, IN/Clark) hit an RBI single, while fellow senior Jeremy Ratajczyk (Highland, IN/Indiana University Northwest) (Highland, Ind.) drove in two runs with a double to right field and senior Jack Bobillo (Michigan City, IN/Kalamazoo Valley CC) (Michigan City, Ind.) lined an RBI double of his own down the left field line.
In the third inning, NJIT (25-27) posted three runs to slice its deficit to 4-3. The highlight of the inning was Tom Bouck's two-run home run off CSU starting pitcher Dylan Sterrett (Chalmers, Ind./Frontier) (Chalmers, Ind.) to right field.
CSU tacked on another run in the fourth inning to hike its leading margin to 5-3 when senior Ryan Malhotra (Oakville, ONT/Niagara County CC) (Oakville, Ontario) hit a one-out double down the left field line and scored two plays later on a RBI sacrifice fly to left center by senior Albert Carpen (Whiting, IN/Clark) (Whiting, Ind.).
The Green and White added two more runs in the top of the sixth to increase its lead to 7-3 that began with singles from senior William Hill (Wheaton, Ill./Glenbard South) (Wheaton, Ill.) and Bobillo. Hill later scored on a NJIT throwing error and Bobillo crossed home plate on the next play via an RBI sacrifice fly from Malhotra. The Highlanders scored in the bottom half of the sixth to pull within 7-4 after James D'Aloia walked and later reached home on a wild pitch.
D'Aloia struck again in the seventh inning with a two-RBI triple to right center which scored John Bouck and Bryan Bleakley as NJIT closed within 7-6. The home team evened the score at 7-7 in the eighth as Matt Weckerle lined an RBI single to left field to bring home Ed Charlton to set up Jonathan Carpen (Whiting, IN/Clark)'s heroics.
Freshman Aveeno Nasiloski (Hammond, Ind./Gavit) (Hammond, Ind.) hit 3-of-4 with a double for CSU, while Bobillo went 2-of-4 with an RBI. Senior Andrew Watson (Shawnee, OK/Eastern Oklahoma State CC) (Shawnee, Okla.) gained the win and improved his season record to 2-7 after allowing just one hit in 1.2 relief innings with two strikeouts.
Bleakley and Matt Rampone each went 3-of-5 with a double at the plate on the day for NJIT, while Austin McAuliffe (2-1) took the loss after giving up four runs on two hits in two innings of relief. Davis finished the game with seven strikeouts despite allowing seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits in seven innings of work.
The Cougars will face fifth-seeded Houston Baptist in a loser's bracket contest tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 p.m., central time.
~CSU~
