Despite two home runs and three RBI from Jordin Hood, the Northern Illinois baseball team could not hang on to a pair of leads against Central Michigan as the Huskies fell 8-7 in an eventful, sloppy Mid-American Conference tilt at Ralph McKinzie Field Saturday.
Hood’s first blast came in the first inning and gave NIU (17-25, 7-10 MAC) a 2-0 lead, scoring Dave Reynolds after a two-out double to left field. The senior’s tater easily cleared the scoreboard in left and gave him sole possession of second place on the NIU all-time hits list (245).
His second long-ball came in the eighth with NIU trailing, 7-6, as Trent Howard entered the game to start the inning for CMU (24-17, 12-5 MAC). Howard served up a pitch to Hood’s liking and it too sailed over the scoreboard in left, tying the game. Even yesterday’s 28 MPH gusts wouldn’t have been able to alter Hood’s two homers as he totaled his second career two-home run game on a less breezy day with the gusts coming in from right-center. He has each of the last two multi-homer games for the Huskies, doing so with two moon shots against Milwaukee on May 12, 2009 at Road Ranger Stadium.
After closer Andy Deain couldn’t hold the 6-4 NIU lead in the eighth, Hood’s latter shot gave NIU an opportunity for the win, but it wasn’t in the mix. Tom Zelasko walked Matt Faiman on four pitches to start the ninth. Following a Dale Cornstubble sacrifice bunt and Nate Theunissen intentional walk, Zach Oates replaced Zelasko on the mound. On his first pitch, James Teas hit a grounder up the middle to score Faiman, giving CMU the 8-7 advantage.
“Obviously, you can’t walk guys,” said NIU head coach Ed Mathey. “We brought in our closer in the eighth and he was struggling. He came in and attacked today. He gave up some hits, I don’t like it, but he was throwing the ball in the zone, which was better than yesterday.
“Then we led the ninth inning off with a walk. We got in a situation where I don’t like to do it, but we tried to play percentage baseball by bringing in Zach Oates. They were first-pitch swinging, being aggressive. If that ball was hit two or three feet to the left or right, it could have been different, but it was up the middle for a run.”
With two outs in the bottom half of the ninth, NIU got the tying run to first in Alex Jones, who drew a four-pitch walk, but Joe Buonavolanto ended the game on a line drive to center that was well hit but hung up too long.
Despite blowing a save opportunity, Howard (3-2) was credited with the win after allowing one run on one hit and one walk with three strikeouts in two innings. CMU starter Dietrick Enns was chased after 4.1 innings, surrendering five runs, four earned, on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts.
Deain (3-2) was given the loss as he did not record an out, giving up one run on three hits. Starter Jeremy Gonzales threw a strong 7.2 innings, allowing six runs, only two earned, on just four hits and two walks with five strikeouts.
“Gonzales flat out deserved to win,” said Mathey. “Our defense let us down. The ball game shouldn’t have been that close going into the late innings. The stuff that went on earlier raised his pitch count and made him work harder. He had complete game written all over him today.”
After NIU took the quick lead in the initial frame, the Chippewas answered with three in the second, scoring on just one hit, which was a miss-played pop-up to shallow right, with the help of a throwing error and walk by Gonzales.
“We lost this ball game in the second inning,” Mathey said. “We gave up three runs on basically no hits. Not only did we give up two runs, we gave up momentum. It’s a difficult loss. We had a game to win here today and gave it away.”
Gonzales then settled down to retire six straight over the next two frames before the Huskies knotted the game in the bottom of the fourth. Hood started it with a leadoff walk and moved to third on an errant pick-off throw from Enns. Joe Etcheverry then brought Hood in with a sacrifice fly to left.
CMU bounced back in the fifth to tie the game after a hit-by-pitch, fielding error on Hood, and bunt single allowed a run to score on a Faiman sacrifice fly to center.
The second Huskies lead of the contest came with a three-run fifth. Jake Hermsen led off with a double down the left field line and Jones walked an out later. Bryce Morrow then relieved Enns and induced what looked to be an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play ball off the bat of Buonavolanto. However, Theunissen dropped the throw at first base, which allowed Hermsen to score from second and Buonavolanto to move into second. Reynolds followed with an opposite field bloop single to left to score Buonavolanto. After Hood walked, Etcheverry singled to right to score Reynolds.
The two-run NIU advantage stood until the eighth. Following a single and hit-by-pitch, Deain replaced Gonzales with two outs. Facing pinch-hitter Jordan Dean, the MAC saves leader surrendered a two-run double to left-center. Ricky Clark then backed it up with a single through the left side and Robbie Harman brought Dean home with a weak chopper that found its way through the left side.
Hood’s big performance led the Huskies, going 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two walks. Reynolds added two hits, two runs and an RBI. Frantini notched a pair of hits, one double. Etcheverry had a hit and two RBI, while Hermsen had a hit and run scored.
“We did some good things out there though,” said Mathey. “It was good to see our middle of the line-up producing. Hopefully that can be sustained tomorrow.”
The teams will complete the three-game series tomorrow with the rubber match at 1:05 p.m.
