CHICAGO – Chicago State rallied from one-run deficits twice to eventually post a 3-2 walk-off victory over North Dakota in 10 innings on Friday in the Great West series opener between the two teams at Brooks Field. William Hill provided the walk-off hit with a single to left field as the Cougars (12-35, 9-16 GWC) capped the rally over the Sioux (14-35, 7-18 GWC).
Freshman Jeff Campbell (Clearwater, Fla.) drove in the first run for the Sioux in the third with a two-out RBI single after Mark Bearmon (St. Louis Park, Minn.) and Kris Kwak (Maple Grove, Minn.) both singled earlier in the frame. Campbell, Kwak and Bearmon were the only Sioux players to muster multiple hits in the contest.
Freshman Andrew Thome (St. Cloud, Minn.) started for the Sioux and went five innings, allowing only one earned run on three hits, but gave way to senior Kevin Auth (Cambridge, Minn.) to start the sixth with the scored tied at 1-1.
Senior Kyle Bolander (Hermantown, Minn.) broke the deadlock in the sixth with a RBI-single that plated Campbell for the go-ahead run, but the Cougars would once again have an answer. The home team pulled even with a single tally in the seventh off of Auth, pitched 3.2 innings and struck out eight in relief of Thome.
After back-to-back strikeouts in the ninth, Auth was replaced by right-hander Brett DeGagne’ (Sauk Rapids, Minn.) to get the final out in regulation play.
After back-to-back strikeouts in the ninth, Auth was replaced by right-hander Brett DeGagne’ (Sauk Rapids, Minn.) to get the final out in regulation play.
Kwak would register a two-out single in the 10th, but he would be the only baserunner the Sioux could get on base off James Tucker. The Cougars were able to get a leadoff double from Jeremy Ratajczyk in their half of the tenth and he would score the game-winning run on Hill’s second single of the game with one out in the frame.
With his five innings pitched, Thome set a UND single-season record in that category as he now has 84 for the season. The previous mark was held by J.J. Scheving at 80.2 innings pitched in 2004. Thome was on a pitch count on Friday since he will likely start the opener for the Sioux on Tuesday at the GWC Tournament.
UND will resume its series with a doubleheader against Chicago State on Saturday starting at 12 p.m.
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