Lakers Weather the Storm, Defeat the Titans with Ninth Inning Rally

CRESTWOOD, Ill. – The Roosevelt Lakers baseball team waited through a lengthy weather delay, then rallied late to defeat the Indiana South Bend Titans on Friday, April 22. With the win, the Lakers are now 12-11 in conference play and 18-21 overall this season.

IUSB opened the game with a walk, but that was all the baseball that Mother Nature would allow at that time as lightning and rain forced a weather delay that was just over two hours long.

When play resumed, the Titans were able to plate one run in the first as Noah Mathias warmed back up. Luckily for the Lakers, their bats did not need any time to warm up. Jojo Mack led off the Roosevelt half of the inning with a walk, which Daniel Gutierrez immediately followed up with a double. With runners on first and second, Hunter Darst ripped a hit to give the Lakers a 2-1 lead after one.  

While the Lakers bats went cold after that, the Titans were able to tag on single runs in the third and fifth innings to go ahead 3-2. Fast forward to the bottom of the eighth inning and the Lakers were running out of time. With two outs, Nick McAlister followed a walk by stealing second then swiping third base as well. With the game tying run now only 90 feet away, Sean Blanchard singled to left, tying the game at 3 apiece. The Lakers would then draw three consecutive walks to take the lead 4-3.

With the Lakers looking to close things out in the top of the ninth, the Titans would not be denied. Three hits and two runs later, IUSB was back on top 5-4. However, Roosevelt would waste no time striking back as Hunter Darst walked on four pitches and Trevor Heinlein singled to right advancing Darst to third. With runners on the corners, Jaylon Heard drove a deep single to left field, evening the score at 5-5. McAlister followed with a single off the pitcher to load the bases. With Lakers on every bag, Andrew Olszewski singled up the middle past the drawn in infield to drive in the game-winning run and securing the 6-5 victory.

GAME DETAILS

W: Krzysztof Solis (4-3)       L: Taylor Clifton (0-2)

Records: Roosevelt 18-21, 12-11 (CCAC) | Indiana South Bend 12-25-1, 6-15-1 (CCAC)

Location: Ozinga Field | Crestwood, Ill.

NEWS & NOTES

• The Lakers are now 1-0 in the season series against the Titans
• Click here to view the current CCAC Conference standings

NEXT UP

The Lakers head to Granger, Indiana to complete their CCAC season series with the Titans tomorrow, Saturday, April 23. First pitch of the CCAC doubleheader is scheduled for 1 pm from the Rex Weade Stadium.