CAROL STREAM, IL. -- The Adrian College baseball team erased an early deficit with a decisive seventh inning to defeat North Central College (Ill.), 7–5, on Saturday afternoon at Pfund Stadium.
The Bulldogs improved to 7-4 on the season after overcoming a four-run first inning by the Cardinals.
North Central jumped ahead early, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first inning on five hits to take a 4-0 lead. Adrian quickly responded in the second when Cooper Tracy tripled down the right-field line and later scored on an RBI groundout from Jack Boike, cutting the deficit to 4-1.
Adrian continued to chip away in the fourth inning as Jake Burns doubled down the left-field line before Boike delivered again with an RBI single to make it a 4-2 contest.
After North Central added a run in the sixth to extend the lead to 5-2, the Bulldogs exploded in the top of the seventh inning. Rolando Jimenez opened the rally with a single before Nic Bruder followed with a base hit. Brendan Willadsen drove in the first run of the inning with an RBI single, and a wild pitch later scored Bruder to pull Adrian within one.
Tracy continued the surge with an RBI single before Daniel Shipman delivered the biggest hit of the frame, lining a two-run single to right field that pushed the Bulldogs ahead 7-5.
Adrian totaled 12 hits in the game, led by Tracy, who finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI, including a triple. Burns added two doubles and two hits, while Bruder and Jimenez each collected two hits. Boike drove in two RBIs.
On the mound, Ambrose Horwath earned the win in relief, improving to 3-0 after tossing 5.2 innings, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out four. Landon Kozlowski provided two scoreless innings before Lincoln Lipinski closed the door in the ninth to earn the save.
The Bulldogs and Cardinals each recorded 12 hits in the contest, but Adrian capitalized on key opportunities late to secure the victory.
Adrian returns to action Tuesday on home field as they host Manchester University at 4:00 PM.
