Cudahy, Wis. – The Cardinal Stritch University baseball program continued to go on a surge of recent strong play by sending the Calumet College of St. Joseph home with two losses on the day. In a CCAC doubleheader, the Wolves knocked off the Crimson Wave in two games by scores of 5-3 and 8-7. With the win, the Wolves improved to 5-22 overall and 3-7 in the CCAC. The losses drop the Crimson Wave to 10-14 overall and 2-10 in conference play.
In game one, the Wolves played with the steadiness they’ve been searching for all season as all facets of the game were working in their favor. On the offensive side, Stritch hitters pounded out 12 hits throughout the game with the one through four hitters each having at least two hits. Back in the lineup for the first time in two weeks after suffering a hamstring injury, junior Nick Moraza (Milwaukee, Wis.) led the charge for the Wolves by adding two hits and two key RBI during a four-run third inning.
While the hitters let their bats do the talking, freshman pitcher Andy Klein found his comfort zone on the mound. Klein (1-3), who played for Cudahy High School, was very comfortable on the mound at Sheridan Park as it was where he pitched on a regular basis while in high school. The southpaw looked as if he was in his glory days for the Wolves by giving up only three runs, two earned, in six innings of work while striking out 10 hitters on the day.
“Andy did a great job today,” Stritch head coach Michael Zolecki stated. “He came out throwing first-pitch strikes and showed what working ahead in the pitch count can do for a young pitcher. It was a solid outing for him and came at the right time for our team.”
The victory for the Wolves was Klein’s first as a collegiate pitcher.
While game one showed steadiness, game two held dramatics for the surging Wolves. Sophomore pitcher Justin Calvert (Milwaukee, Wis.) threw the ball well, but fell victim to rough defensive play. With the Wolves down 2-1 entering the fifth, the defense crumbled to allow three runs for the Crimson Wave. Calvert would exit after the fifth inning by allowing five runs on six hits with all of the runs coming as unearned.
“Justin followed up with a steady performance in game two,” Zolecki said. “Unfortunately we started to make mistakes with the ball and couldn’t get out of the fifth without damage. Really, we were beating ourselves and we needed someone to step up.”
Down 6-2 entering play in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Wolves stepped up their play collectively. With one out, outfielder Cody Tesch (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.) walked and then was called safe at second base when the Crimson Wave tried to turn a double-play on a fielders’ choice by Kyle Trewyn (Whitewater, Wis.). Safe at first, Trewyn was replaced by pinch runner Drew Arenkill (Aurora, Ill.). With runners at first and second, third baseman Nick Moraza came up and roped a two-run double right center to bring the Wolves within 6-4.
Down by two and still only one out, Moraza was lifted for a pinch runner in the form of Jason Calvert (Milwaukee, Wis.). Freshman centerfielder Michael Ploch (Lake Geneva, Wis.) stepped in and laced a one-out triple to right center to score Calvert and bring the Wolves to within one run of tying the game. Rightfielder Nick Majeske (Milwaukee, Wis.) came up and smashed an opposite field single to score Ploch and tie the game at 6-6. The Wolves were then doubled-up on a line drive off the bat of Jon Laidlaw (Westmont, Ill.) to end the rally.
Feeling momentum on their side, the Wolves entered the top of the seventh, things quickly changed as freshman pitcher Alex Aguilar (Berea, Ohio) yielded a lead-off home run by Ryan Young to put the Crimson Wave up 7-6. Not willing to give in, Aguilar was lifted in favor of Brian Hirschinger (Grafton, Wis.) who had recorded the save in game one. Hirschinger (1-0) went to work quickly by setting Calumet down in order and giving the Wolves’ offense a chance to stage another comeback.
Leading off the bottom of the seventh while down 7-6, Nick Buerger made quick work of his at bat by singling to right centerfield off of starting pitcher Ryan Bobos (0-2) to start a rally. After failing to move Buerger over on a bunt attempt, the Wolves found themselves with Buerger still at first base and now one out. However, stepping into the box was one of the Wolves’ hottest hitters this week in sophomore Micah Thompson (North Prairie, Wis.). Thompson, who had two hits in game one, saved his biggest hit for the last at-bat of game two. The right-handed hitting Thompson saw a first pitch fastball from Bobos and promptly deposited it over the left field wall for a game-winning, two-run walk-off homerun to send the Wolves to an 8-7 victory.
“Standing in the on deck circle, I just felt really good about my swing and felt that if I could get the pitch I wanted, I could do some damage,” Thompson said.
For Thompson and the Wolves, the homerun completed an emotional comeback in game two sending the Wolves to a two-game sweep of the Crimson Wave.
“We could have honestly just thrown in the towel,” Zolecki noted. “However, the guys didn’t quit and showed how they can grow as a team. This was a great way to get a team win.”
The Wolves will take Friday off and return to action at Sheridan Park on Saturday, April 19 at noon for a CCAC double-header against Purdue-North Central.