Box score
NEWARK, NJ—Weston Lewis hit a tie-breaking three-run double to key a six-run ninth-inning rally that lifted visiting Chicago State over NJIT, 12-8, in Great West Conference baseball Saturday at Bears and Eagles Riverfront Stadium.
The game was the regular season finale for both teams, who will continue play in this week's Great West Conference Tournament beginning on Tuesday in North Dakota.
Lewis, who is batting over .300 for the season, was injured in pregame warmups on Thursday before the first of the four games between the two teams. He did not play that game, started the second game of the series but left after his first at-bat and did not play in the third game or start the fourth game.
However, he entered on Saturday as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning and singled then before delivering the biggest hit of the game an inning later.
The Cougars, now 4-19 in the Great West Conference and 9-39 overall, entered the ninth trailing by two runs, 8-6. They rallied for six runs, four of which scored after two were out. On top of that, they already had two runs in and the bases loaded without a hit, before Lewis came through with his big double, the first CSU hit of the inning.
NJIT finishes the regular season at 19-33 overall and 12-16 in the Great West, which is good for fifth place in the eight-team conference. Even with Saturday's disappointing defeat, the Highlanders closed the regular season with eight wins in the last 11 games.
Chicago State used four pitchers and the win went to the fourth one, freshman RHP Caleb Fialka, who pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless two-hit ball to earn his first college victory. Fialka (1-1) had also pitched two scoreless relief innings in Thursday's 6-4 series-opening win for NJIT.
NJIT used three pitchers and the third, sophomore RHP Kyle Burdi (2-6) took the loss. Burdi, who had pitched 1.2 scoreless innings before the ninth and was in line to be the winning pitcher if his team had held on, was charged with six unearned runs in the ninth inning and finished with a line of: 2.2 innings, 4 hits, 6 unearned runs, 6 walks and 5 strikeouts.
Five of Burdi's walks came in the fateful ninth inning, as Chicago State sent 11 men to the plate and scored the six unearned runs on two hits.
The game began and ended under sunny skies with temperatures in the mid-70s, but a brief rain shower began in the eighth inning and the rain was coming down hard in the bottom of the eighth and top of the ninth. With the mound becoming increasingly muddy, Burdi had trouble with his landing foot, stopping several times to try to clear the mud from his spikes.
He also lost control of the strike zone after striking out the first batter in the ninth inning. He walked the next two and then got Miguel Camacho, who had three previous base-hits, to hit a ground ball to third base that scooted through for an error, allowing the first Chicago State run of the inning to cross the plate. After another strikeout, Burdi issued two more walks, the first of which loaded the bases and the second, to Jack Bobillo, that forced in the tying run.
That brought up Lewis, who drove a double over the right fielder's head for CSU's first hit of the inning, a blow that cleared the bases and lifted the Cougars from an 8-8 tie into an 11-8 lead. After another walk, William Hill singled to drive home Lewis with the 12th Chicago State run.
The six-run ninth inning was part of late bullpen and fielding breakdown by NJIT that saw Chicago State score 10 runs in the last four innings, helped by four Highlander errors in the last three innings. The Cougars rallied back from a deficit of 6-2 to tie the score at 6-6 in the middle of the seventh, before NJIT regained the 8-6 lead that went out the window in the ninth. Eight of CSU's 12 runs on the day were unearned.
NJIT freshman RHP Matt Coughlin, making his first Great West Conference start and third start overall, went the first five innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and three walks. He also struck out three and turned over the game to the bullpen with a 6-2 lead.
The first Highlander reliever, senior RHP John Prestano, pitched 1.1 innings and was charged with four runs (three earned), on three hits and two walks, before turning the ball over to Burdi with a 6-5 lead and one out with a runner on third base in the seventh inning.
Chicago State used three pitchers ahead of the winner Fialka. The starter, Albert Carpen, gave up six runs (five earned) on 10 hits in 4.1 innings and the first reliever, Jose Leon, allowed two more runs in two innings and was on the hook on the losing side until his team rallied to win.
The third CSU pitcher, Andrew Watson, combined with Fialka to keep NJIT off the board over the last 2.2 innings.
The winning Cougars, who rallied unsuccessfully in two of the first three losses in the series against NJIT before getting over the top to win the finale, got 11 hits on Saturday, led by Camacho, who was 3-for-5, including two doubles, with two runs scored and two driven in.
Jonathan Carpen was 2-for-5, with a double and a triple, scoring three times and driving in a pair of runs. Four other Cougars got one hit apiece and three of them—Michael Carpen, Hill, and Bobillo each drove in a run, as well.
NJIT, which scored eight runs, but also left 13 runners on base, matched its season high with 16 hits, including five doubles and a home run. The Highlanders also walked six times.
Matt Weckerle and Anthony Caiola had three hits apiece and four others--DJ Roche, Jeff Peterson, Tyler Kapp, and Vincent Del Vecchio--got two hits each.
Roche had a double and three-run homer, his fourth of the year, that keyed a five-run NJIT fifth inning that gave the Highlanders a 6-2 lead.
The sophomore Roche now has 17 doubles, a new school record (previously John Biondo, 16, 2000) and 42 RBI, tied for the second-highest total in school history, trailing only Kwesi Mitchell's record 44 in 2007, NJIT's first season of Division I competition. Kapp, who hit two doubles, drove in a pair of runs on Saturday, as well.
Everyone in the NJIT batting order except leadoff man Matt Tomczyk got at least one hit and he, too, was part of the offense, driving in his team's eighth run on a fielder's choice and also scoring a run earlier in the game after reaching on a walk.
After two scoreless innings, Chicago State scored first on a sacrifice fly for Michael Carpen with one out in the top of the third inning. The Cougars added an unearned run in the next inning for a 2-0 lead. With two outs, Camacho used his speed to leg out a double on a hit to right center field and he motored home one pitch later, when Jeremy Ratajczyk's dribbler went through the first baseman's legs for an error.
The Highlanders got a run back in the bottom of the fourth on a two-out RBI single by Caiola, who drove in Roche, who had opened the inning with a double to right center field and was on third base when Caiola singled.
NJIT surged into the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning on Roche's home run, a three-run shot into the visitors' bullpen beyond the left field fence with one out. Peterson and Bryan Bleakley followed Roche's blast with back-to-back doubles, producing another run. Bleakley later scored the fifth run of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Kapp.
Chicago State was far from done, however, and Jonathan Carpen greeted the first NJIT reliever, Prestano, with a double to open the sixth inning. After an out, Camacho doubled into the left field corner, plating Carpen with the third CSU run.
The Cougars kept coming in the seventh inning, scoring three runs to tie the score at six apiece. With one out and a runner on first base, Michael Hill reached first on an infield error and Jonathan Carpen followed that play with a triple into the gap in left center field, driving in two runs and knocking Prestano out of the game in favor of Burdi. After a walk, Camacho singled for his third hit of the day to bring home the tying run. Burdi then avoided further harm with an inning-ending double play.
NJIT went on top again with two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. With one out, Bleakley walked and Caiola got his third hit of the game, a single. Peterson singled through the left side, driving in the go-ahead run. Chicago State then gave Del Vecchio an intentional walk to load the bases.
Tomczyk, the fastest Highlander, used his speed to create another run. With the bases loaded and one out, Tomczyk hit a slow grounder to shortstop and, with the Cougars attempting to turn a double play, he beat the throw to first, as the second NJIT run of the inning to scored from third base.
Neither team got a run in the eighth inning as the rain began to fall and then Chicago State staged the decisive six-run rally in the top of the ninth inning.
NJIT got two baserunners in the ninth inning on singles by Del Vecchio and Teddy Bickert, but Fialka finished off the inning and his first college win without allowing a run.
The Highlanders recognized their three seniors, Steven Ace, Prestano, and Tomczyk in pregame ceremonies marking the final career home game for the trio.
The two teams will depart on Sunday for Grand Forks, ND, where they will compete in the Great West Conference Tournament, hosted by the University of North Dakota, starting on Tuesday. Pairings and game times for the eight-team, double-elimination tournament will be announced following the completion of regular season play.
