Apr. 25, 2021 – Thanks in part to a 10-run sixth inning on Sunday, the North Central College baseball team completed the four-game season series sweep over Millikin University while extending its current win streak to 12 games.

The Cardinals (23-5, 17-3 CCIW) struck first with a run in the bottom of the second on a RBI-triple down the right field line off the bat of Luke Lehnen to open the scoring, but the Big Blue took that run right back in the top half of the third.

With the score tied 1-1, Rob Marinec was hit by a pitch and Justin Rios singled to start the bottom of the third.  Jared Wojcik then legged out a bunt single, while Marinec scored on a throwing error on the play in a late attempt to get Wojcik.  Two batters later, Joe Rizzo lofted a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Rios while taking a 3-1 lead.

Adding to the lead in the bottom of the fifth, Marinec singled to lead off the frame followed by another single from Rios.  Wojcik then singled home Marinec, before Paul Beverly singled to right to load the bases with nobody away.

Following a strikeout, Rios trotted home on a wild pitch ahead of Luke Gregorio who sent Wojcik home with a RBI-base hit up the middle to increase the North Central advantage 6-1.

North Central really put the game out of reach in the bottom of the sixth with one of the most dominant half innings in recent memory, as the first 11 batters of the inning reached base and the first 10 batters of the inning came around to score without the Big Blue recording an out.

Dom Listi drew a leadoff walk and promptly came around to score on a triple to right center off the bat of Marinec.  Rios then wasted no time in plating Marinec with a base-knock to right center, before Wojcik walked and Beverly was hit by a pitch to load the bases.

Rizzo then singled up the middle to move everyone up 90 feet, ahead of Gregorio who plated a pair with a single to right center field.  With runners on first and third, Michael Stoltz got in on the action with a RBI-single to right, before Lehnen singled through the left side to once again load the bases.

With the bases jam packed full of Cardinals, Listi quickly emptied them with his ninth triple of the season to right center, breaking the program's single-season record set by Michael Mateja '18 in 2017.

Pinch-hitting for Rios, Johnny Auge plated his first run of the season, scoring Listi with a sacrifice fly to left, capping the scoring in the inning to give North Central a 16-1 lead.

Two Cardinals broke single-season record in the bottom of the sixth, in addition to Listi's record-breaking triple, Beverly's hit by pitch was his 17^th of the season, breaking the previous record set in 1999.  Beverly had just one career hit by pitch entering this season.

Luke Lamm finished what he started on the mound, tossing all seven innings, allowing just the one unearned run while striking out three and walking none. Lamm improves to a CCIW-leading 7-0 on the season and lowers his already CCIW-leading earned run average to 0.80 this season.  His seven win this season move him into a tie for seventh on the program's single-season record list.

Offensively, all nine Cardinal starters in the lineup recorded a hit on the afternoon, as Rios was 2-for-2 with two hit by pitches, three runs scored and a RBI.  Gregorio finished 2-for-3 with a hit by pitch, three RBI and two runs scored, while Wojcik was also 2-for-3 and added two walks, two runs and a RBI.

Marinec finished 2-for-3 from the dish with a walk, hit by pitch, three runs scored and RBI.  His sixth-inning triple gives him 11 on his career, moving into a tied for sixth on the program's all-time list, while Listi's triple moves him into a tie for fourth with 12 career three baggers.

Lehnen also added a pair of hits atop the lineup including his triple in the second, as the Cardinals had three triples on the afternoon, giving them 19 on the season which ranks second in a single-season.

North Central now holds a 2.5 game lead over Augustana College atop the CCIW standings, as the Cardinals host the Vikings on Wednesday at 3 p.m. at Zimmerman Stadium in a huge mid-week conference matchup.