The Carthage College baseball team (19-22, 11-10 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin) saw its 2016 season come to an end on Friday afternoon, May 13 with a 7-6 loss to Illinois Wesleyan University (23-18, 13-8 CCIW) in the second round of the CCIW Baseball Tournament at Swanson Stadium/Brunner Field in Moline, Ill. Illinois Wesleyan scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth after Carthage scored five times in the top of the inning to tie the game, 6-6.
The Red Men opened tournament play on Thursday, May 12 with a 3-0 loss to top-seeded Augustana College (Ill., 28-12, 15-6 CCIW). Carthage was the fourth-seeded team in the tournament. In Thursday's first game, second-seeded and No. 13 North Central College (30-8, 15-6) trounced third-seeded Illinois Wesleyan (22-18, 13-8) by a 13-5 margin. The remainder of the Friday schedule was postponed due to impending inclement weather. The tournament will resume on Saturday, May 14 with a Noon game between Augustana (Ill.) and North Central (Ill.). Illinois Wesleyan will take on the loser of that contest in a 3:30 p.m. semifinal contest on Saturday, with the championship round getting underway on Sunday, May 15 at Noon.
In Friday's elimination game, Illinois Wesleyan took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on an RBI-single by Tim Smyk. Carthage tied the game, 1-1, in the third when Anthony Fortunato scored from third on a bases-loaded fielding error by Titan shortstop Stephen Billington. Starting pitchers Jared Helmich and Nick Brune dueled away until the Titans broke through with a four-run seventh inning to take a 5-1 lead. Six-straight Titans reached base with two outs and all four runs scored with two outs. Jacob Houghton hit an RBI-single to break the tie, and Luke Mentkowski replaced Helmich on the hill. John Bosco singled in two runs off Mentkowski, and Jarrod Juskiewicz followed with a run-scoring single.
The unexpected and the unforeseen occurred in the top of the ninth. Titan closer Brian Henry replaced Brune with two on and one out, and Carthage pinch-hitter Ryan Rodgers greeted Henry with a three-run home run down the leftfield line to cut the score to 6-4. Jordan Wiegold singled, and with two outs, Helmich doubled him to third. True to his name, Reed Hero, singled in both runners to tie the contest, 6-6. Carthage used four pinch hitters in the inning. "I was really just trying to get some kids some at bats," admitted Carthage coach Augie Schmidt IV," although we do have some guys on the bench who can hit. Ryan Rodgers got the big home run, but we know he can hit, and away we go."
In the bottom of the ninth, with Brandon Hrdlicka on the hill for Carthage, Jarrod Juskiewicz singled with one out. With two outs, Tim Smyk singled Juskiewicz to third, and Juskiewicz scored the game-winning run on a single to right by Ben Manski.
Mike Plecki (3-1), who took over for Henry to get the last out in the top of the ninth, was the winning pitcher. Starter Nick Brune allowed three runs, two earned, on eight hits and walk over eight and one-third innings. Jared Helmich, still battling an elbow injury, gutted out six and two-thirds innings and surrendered four runs on nine hits and a walk. Brandon Hrdlicka ((2-2) was saddled with the loss. "Helmich pitched great," said Schmidt. "It was all guts--he had nothing. He's all banged up, but he's such a competitor." Jordan Wiegold, who led the Red Men this season with a .390 batting average, seven home runs and 35 RBI, led Carthage's 12-hit attack by going three-for-five.
"It was good to see the big comeback in the ninth," said Schmidt, "because that's what we're known for. That inning was fun, but unfortunately, we didn't get it done on the back end. Getting knocked out is what it is. This wasn't what we envisioned for this team this year—it just wasn't meant to be. It was a good group of kids but a very difficult season. We had a lot of challenges, and this was a hard year. We had to fight like heck for everything we got."