Galesburg, IL – The Prairie Fire opened conference play by splitting a doubleheader at home against Grinnell College on Thursday.
Knox (7-5, 1-1 MWC South) used a six run fourth inning to win the first Midwest Conference South Division game for both squads 7-5, the Prairie Fire's fourth straight victory.
The Pioneers (6-10, 1-1 MWC South) avoided the sweep and ended a two-game slide with a 14-8 win in the second contest.
Grinnell scored a pair of runs in the top of the third inning of the first game for an early 2-0 lead. Knox answered with a run in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by senior Caleb Weaver (Galesburg, IL, Galesburg) to cut the Pioneer advantage in half.
The Prairie Fire took the lead for good at 7-2 after scoring six times in the bottom of the fourth inning. Junior Michael O'Connell (Park Ridge, IL, Maine South) doubled to drive in a run while junior Jackson White (Grayslake, IL, Grayslake Central) and Weaver each had RBI singles. Three other Knox runs scored on miscues in the field by the Pioneers.
Grinnell rallied with three runs in the sixth inning to cut the Prairie Fire lead to 7-5. Junior Dustin Armstrong (Cincinnati, OH, Country Day) entered the game in relief of first-year pitcher Mitch Weissenhofer (Homewood, IL, Marian Catholic) with two outs and the bases loaded. He retired the first Pioneer batter he faced on a ground ball back to the mound to end the threat.
Armstrong was virtually flawless for Knox, shutting Grinnell out over the final three innings to earn his third save of the season. He allowed just one hit and had one strikeout.
Weaver was 3-for-5 with two RBIs at the plate for the Fire. White, O'Connell, and junior Phil Tallman (Park Ridge, IL, Maine South) added two hits apiece in the win.
Junior Peter Marquardt (Clarendon Hills, lL, Hinsdale Central) was the winning pitcher. Marquardt (2-0) gave up five runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings while striking out five.
Knox got off to a good start in the twinbill finale by scoring three runs in the bottom of the third inning. Tallman scored the first run of the game when White's ground ball was misplayed by the second baseman. Weaver followed by launching a two-run homer, his first of the season, to put the Prairie Fire on top 3-0.
Grinnell, after not scoring during the first three innings, woke up on offense in the top of the fourth with five runs for a 5-3 lead. The Pioneers, with two outs and still trailing 3-0, benefitted when Yuki Kawahara struck out but reached base on a passed ball, allowing the first run to score. Three more run scoring singles followed before the inning ended with a fly ball to left field.
Grinnell extended the lead to 8-3 in the sixth inning when the Prairie Fire made it interesting.
Walenga smacked a two-run single with the bases loaded to cut the deficit to 8-5. An infield error by the Pioneers resulted in two more runs before the inning ended with Knox knocking on the door down just 8-7.
Grinnell, which banged out 19 hits in the game, answered right back with three runs in the seventh inning and three more in the eighth to put the game out of reach at 14-7.
The Prairie Fire concluded the scoring with a run in the ninth inning on a single by senior Ryan Hoffman (Sugar Grove, IL, Marmion Academy).
Weaver added two more hits and two runs to go along with his two RBIs for Knox. Tallman also had a pair of hits and two runs scored.
Senior Ryan Stoens (Bartonville, IL, Limestone) started the game on the hill for the Prairie Fire and was saddled with the loss. Stoens (0-1) surrendered six runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings with four strikeouts and three walks.