DEKALB, Ill. – Scott Ota drove in six runs, Matt Bottcher collected a career-high five hits and both he and Ryan Lin-Peistrup scored four times apiece as the UIC Flames roared from behind on multiple occasions to topple the Northern Illinois Huskies Tuesday afternoon, 15-10.

UIC (13-13) trailed by scores of 4-1, 6-4 and 8-6 at McKinzie Field before taking the lead for good with four runs in the top of the seventh and adding four more in the top of the eighth for some significant insurance.

Ota had a season-high six RBI, three of which came on a bases-clearing triple in the eighth inning. Bottcher became the second UIC player to record five hits in a game, joining Ryan Hampe, who did so at Milwaukee on March 29. Bottcher and Lin-Peistrup are the second and third Flames to score four times in the team's last two games after Derrick Patrick did so at Youngstown State on Sunday. Patrick drove in a career-high four runs against the Huskies Tuesday.

How It Happened

• For the second time in as many games, UIC got off to a quick start with a first-inning run Tuesday. Bottcher drove the second pitch of the afternoon to left-center field for a double before Patrick singled in the same direction to pick up a run for the Flames.
• The Huskies responded by tallying four runs in the bottom of the first and did so with only one hit. Following a walks and a hit batsman, Dylan Lonteen doubled in a run for NIU to tie the game at 1-1. The next three batters walked before Alex Rodriguez hit into a double play, but a run scored on that play and suddenly it was 4-1 in favor of the home team.
• Patrick, who hit .500 in the recent three-game series at Youngstown State, picked up his second hit in as many at-bats with two away in the top of the second. This one, a double, drove in Thomas Smart, who had singled to begin the frame. Following Patrick, Ota extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a two-run double to center field that scored both Lin-Peistrup and Patrick to tie the game at 4-4.
• Northern Illinois jumped back in front with a pair of runs in the bottom of the third inning. Jordan Larson and Rodriguez each had RBI singles in the inning for the Huskies.
• That advantage was also short-lived as the Flames tacked on two more runs in the top of the fourth. Lin-Peistrup and Bottcher singled to start the frame and two batters later Ota reached on an infield single that scored Lin-Peistrup. Ryan Hampe came up next and tied the game at six runs apiece with a base hit to left-center field.
• NIU was in front 8-6 after six innings when the Flames took control for good with a four-run outburst in the top of the seventh. Smart singled to start the inning and he scored when Joshua Figueroa cracked a double to the opposite field to pull the Flames within a run. Patrick later put UIC in front for good with a two-run single and Hampe added an RBI groundout that made it 10-8 in favor of the Flames.
• The Huskies were held off the scoreboard in the bottom of the seventh and UIC added four more runs to its total in the first half of the eighth. Figueroa scored the first run of the frame as he began it with a base hit and found himself on third base after back-to-back walks. The NIU reliever was then called for a balk to allow the Flames to score. The bases remained loaded after another free pass to Patrick and Ota quickly unclogged them with a three-run triple to right-center field to make it 14-8.
• NIU scored twice in the bottom of the eighth and UIC posted its 15^th and final run of the game in the top of the ninth on the back of Bottcher's fifth hit, an RBI single that scored Smart.

Notable

• UIC's 23 hits marked a season high and it was the second time this year collecting at least 20. The Flames scored 21 runs on 21 hits in a 15-run win at Milwaukee on March 30. UIC left 15 runners on base at NIU, also a season high.
• Eight of the nine hitters in UIC's starting lineup had at least two hits Tuesday. Five of them scored at least two times each.
• The Flames scored nine runs from the seventh inning on during Tuesday's win. In 26 games this season, UIC has outscored the opposition 47-27 in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings. The Flames have 23 runs in the seventh inning alone this season, most in any frame.
• UIC batted .427 in two wins over NIU this season. Ryan Lin-Peistrup hit .833 (5-of-6) with two doubles and five runs scored. Bottcher hit .700 (7-of-10) with a team-high seven hits and Scott Ota drove in nine runs on six hits in the series.
• Ota extended his hitting streak to 11 games. In that span he is batting .440 with 22 hits (10 extra-base hits), five home runs and 16 RBI for the Flames.
• Tuesday marked the second time Ota drove in six runs in a game. He also accomplished the feat on March 24, 2017 against Valparaiso.
• Ota's triple in the eighth inning was the first of the season for the senior, who is now six hits shy of 200 for his career. It was the 15^th three-base hit of his career which is tied for second in program history (Mike Hughes). Steve McGuiggan is UIC's all-time leader with 17 triples.
• In the last four games Derrick Patrick is batting .529 (9-for-17) with five RBI and six runs scored. He posted a career-high four RBI Tuesday.
• Bottcher became the second UIC player this season to register a career-high five hits in a game. He and Ota are tied for the team lead with 11 multi-hit games this season.
• Lin-Peistrup reached safely in all five of his plate appearances at Northern Illinois. He had a season-high three hits, walked twice and scored a career-high four runs.
• Reliever Sam Menegat picked up his first victory in a UIC uniform on Tuesday.
• Four of six pitchers used in the game did not allow a run. Nick Oliff, Mark McCabe, Menegat and Alex Padilla combined banded together for 4.2 scoreless frames.

On Deck

• After playing the last five Horizon League games on the road, UIC will return to Granderson Stadium to host a three-game conference set against Northern Kentucky beginning on April 12 at 6:35 p.m.
• The Flames are 7-4 in League games this spring and 4-2 at home.