Wartburg rallied from an 8-1 deficit to take a 9-8 victory in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader in Sauget, Illinois. The Vikings later bounced back in the second game, prevailing 9-3 to salvage the split.
North Park took an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second as a Mike Coduto groundball was misplayed and scored Joe Belmonte, while Tyler Woolbright drove in Dan Sabin on a groundout. After the Knights cut the deficit to 2-1 in the fourth with an unearned run against Viking hurler Alex Silverthorne, North Park sent ten batters to the plate in a six-run fifth to take an 8-1 lead. Mitchell Jordan led off the frame with a double and came around on a passed ball and a throwing error. Zak Worsley hit a one-out double, Eric Sousanes walked, Tommy Endres doubled home Worsley, Belmonte reached on an error that scored Sousanes, and Sabin launched a three-run homer to right center.
Wartburg answered with another unearned run in the sixth, but then put together a five-run seventh to pull to within a run. After the first two batters reached base, Silverthorne was lifted in favor of reliever Kenny Blanchard, who recorded two competitive strikeouts before walking the next batter to load the bases. Reliever Jason Meger walked the only batter he would face to drive in a run, and then Knights catcher Blake Wilson socked a line drive off Merrick McGrady to deep right field, which appeared to glance off Endres' mitt and over the low fence for a grand slam.
The Knights would cap off the comeback with two runs in the ninth. Leadoff batter Ryan Kemp reached on an error and pinch hitter Jason Thumann hit a score-tying double. Michael Schinstock connected for a run-scoring single off reliever Matt Peterson. Wartburg reliever Alex Steines stranded two Viking baserunners in the bottom of the ninth to close out the win.
In the loss, Silverthorne worked six solid innings and had his second no-decision of the year. McGrady was charged with the defeat. Sabin (3-for-4 with a single, double, home run, and 3 RBIs), Endres (2-for-5 with two doubles), and Coduto (2-for-5) paced the hitting attack.
In game two, North Park took another early lead and never looked back for their second victory of the season. T.D. Conway picked up his first collegiate win with a strong 7 1/3 inning performance.
The Vikings struck for two runs in the second. Belmonte and Sabin singled and moved up on a wild pitch. Coduto then hit a sacrifice fly and Jordan had a two-out RBI single. Wartburg came back with a single run in the bottom of the second on two singles and a sacrifice fly, but North Park plated a pair in the third for a 4-1 lead when a double by Endres drove in Worsley and Coduto's second sacrifice fly of the game brought home Sousanes.
The Knights cut the lead to 4-2 with an unearned run in the third, set up by the only Viking error of the game. But North Park's defense would tighten up considerably after that, registering three double plays and one runner thrown out on a steal attempt.
The Vikings scored once in the fifth (a Belmonte single brought home Sousanes), three in the sixth (a single by Sousanes drove in Woolbright and a two-run double off the bat of Endres scored Jordan and Worsley), and one more in the seventh (a solo home run by Coduto). After walking two in the eighth, Conway was lifted in favor of Charlie Moran, who retired the side. Moran allowed an unearned run in the ninth on two hit batsmen and a single, but a 6-4-3 double play quelled the rally and put the game in the win column for the Vikings.
Conway (1-1) scattered nine hits and walked only two in his second quality start. Endres had his second consecutive two-double game, driving in three and scoring twice. Sousanes was 3-for-5 with two runs scored, Belmonte and Jordan each had a pair of hits, Coduto had three runs batted in, and Connor Sarant, making his first start in left field, recorded four putouts.
The Vikings (2-3) are off until the coming weekend, when they face Ohio Northern University in the first game of the Gene Cusic Classic in Fort Myers, Florida.