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Michael Paxson walk-off vs Hope 3-19-25
Photo by Scott Beavin (Beavin Photography)
Michael Paxson being congratulated for his walk-off two-run home run against Hope College on Wednesday, March 19th.
7
Hope HOPE 5-10
18
Winner Illinois Tech IIT 5-7
Hope HOPE
5-10
7
Final
18
Illinois Tech IIT
5-7
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E
Hope HOPE 1 0 0 0 1 5 0 0 7 8 7
Illinois Tech IIT 1 0 0 2 0 6 0 9 18 14 2

W: Kotwasinski, Gabriel (1-0) L: L. Vowell (0-2) S: Carillo, Nicolas (1)

Game Recap: Baseball | | by Ryan Cantlin

Baseball Overpowers Hope in High-Scoring Affair

Lake Myrtle, FL – In a game filled with offensive fireworks, Illinois Tech surged late to defeat Hope 18-7 in their final game of the spring trip Wednesday morning in Florida.. Hope held a 7-3 lead through six innings, but Illinois Tech's bats exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth and nine more in the eighth to secure the win. The victory brings Illinois Tech to a 4-7 record, while Hope falls to 5-10.

How It Happened

Hope struck first in the top of the first inning when Colton Kinnie drove in Al Money with a sacrifice fly. Illinois Tech quickly responded in the bottom half of the inning with a sacrifice fly from Mathew Bove, tying the game at one. After a few quiet innings, Illinois Tech broke through in the fourth when a Carson Vrba sacrifice fly and a two-out RBI single by Luke Yachnin pushed them ahead 3-1.

Hope battled right back in the fifth inning as Ben Stratman's RBI single cut the deficit to 3-2. The following inning, Hope surged into the lead with a five-run explosion. Money's RBI single tied the game before an error allowed another run to score. The big blow came off the bat of Kinnie, who crushed a three-run home run to left, putting Hope ahead 7-3.

Illinois Tech responded immediately in similar fashion to their first game of the Florida trip. A pinch-hit double from Tyler Gutsfeld plated Carson Vrba, who had reached on an error. Illinois Tech continued to pressure the Dutchmen defense as pinch hitter Michael Paxson hit a deep fly ball that fell, scoring Gutsfeld and Jonah Wilkes, who had reached on an earlier error. A passed ball and a single from Jack Friar allowed two more runs to score before Bove capped off the six-run inning with a two-out, two-run double, giving Illinois Tech a 9-7 lead. Ethan Jensen collected three outs for the Hawks in the seventh, and Nico Carrillo did the same in the eighth, keeping the Hawks in the lead by two.

Illinois Tech put the game out of reach with a dominant nine-run bottom of the eighth inning, capitalizing on Hope's defensive struggles and timely hitting. Yachnin led off with a perfectly placed bunt single before Paxson hit a ground-rule double, setting up the rally. Friar reached on an error, allowing a run to score, and Lucas Waunn followed with a walk to load the bases. Bove then dropped down a two-strike squeeze bunt, scoring a run and reaching on another error. A bases-loaded walk to J. Finch made it 12-7, and a passed ball added another. Christopher Degroot delivered a two-run double, extending the lead to 15-7. After a successful double steal brought in another run, Paxson capped the massive inning with a two-run homer to left, ending the inning and sealing an 18-7 Scarlet Hawks victory.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

Inside the Box Score

  • Illinois Tech out-hit Hope 14-8 and capitalized on seven Hope errors.
  • Hope's bullpen struggled, surrendering 12 runs in the final three innings.
  • Illinois Tech's explosive eighth inning saw them send 12 batters to the plate, scoring nine times.

Up Next

The Scarlet Hawks will open NACC conference play with their home opener this Saturday, March 22nd, at Ed Glancy Field with a doubleheader against the Edgewood College Eagles.

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