Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
St. Francis (N.Y.)
Wildcats Defeat St. Francis College (N.Y.), 18-2
3/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 19, 2005
BRADENTON, Fla. - Caleb Fields (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) drove in four and Anthony Wycklendt (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet) hit a pair of doubles, as the Northwestern baseball team defeated St. Francis College (N.Y.), 18-2, Saturday afternoon in Bradenton, Fla. The Wildcats totaled 16 hits in the ballgame, including seven for extra bases, improving to 5-6 on the year.
The Terriers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, scoring single runs in both the first and second innings. One of the two runs was unearned. Sophomore starter Andrew Smith pitched eight complete innings, NU's longest outing for a pitcher this season, lowering he ERA to 2.53 in 21.1 innings pitched. He improved his record to 1-2.
Following SFNY's second run, NU scored three runs in the bottom of the second and exploded for six more in the fourth.
In the Wildcats half of the second inning, Wycklendt cracked the first of his two doubles to the right centerfield wall, tying the game at 2-2. His hit scored catcher Pat McMahon (Mundelein, Ill./Carmel) and center fielder Stanley Finch (Lubbock, Texas/Cooper). McMahon walked and Finch was hit by a pitch to reach base. NU took the lead when freshman right fielder Max Mann (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood) hit his third triple of the season to deep centerfield, scoring Wycklendt.
In the fourth, Fields lined a single to center to score Antonio Mule (Lodi, N.J./Lodi) from third. Mule walked and moved to third on Wycklendt's second double of the game. Following a Terrier pitching change, freshman Jake Owens (Stevens Point, Wis./Pacelli) hit a towering sacrifice fly to deep right, scoring Wycklendt. With Mann on third and one out, the St. Francis pitcher uncorked a wild pitch, giving NU a 6-2 lead. After an infield pop fly for the second out of the inning, NU loaded the bases after first baseman Mark Ori (Niles, Ill./Maine South) walked and third baseman Jon Mikrut (Wauconda, Ill./Carmel) was hit by a pitch. McMahon wasted no time breaking the game open, lining a base-clearing double down the left field line, putting NU ahead 9-2. A strikeout ended the inning.
With Smith cruising, NU's defense helped their pitcher out, completing five double plays in the game.
The Wildcat scoring did not stop in the fourth inning. NU exploded for seven more runs in the seventh inning and two more in the eighth.
In the seventh, NU used five hits and took advantage of two Terrier throwing errors to plate seven runs. Fields had a two-RBI double and Ori had a two-RBI single in the inning. Freshman Rob Campbell (Bloomfield, Mich./Andover) led off the inning with a walk and after NU batted around the order, hit his first collegiate hit, smacking a single through the left side. NU sent 12 hitters to the plate in the inning, five of which reached base via a hit.
In the eighth, freshman Mark Bennett (Palos Park, Ill./Providence Catholic) led off with a pinch-hit single and came around to score on Mike Phelps' (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) triple to right centerfield. Phelps scored on a Finch single down the left field line.
Sophomore Bobby Ferla (Waldwick, N.J./St. Joseph Regional) pitched the ninth for NU, not allowing a run and striking out two.
NU is next in action when they take on Cornell at 1 p.m. (EST) at IMG Academy Park.
