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UIC Athletics

thevalley
AJ Henkle
8
Winner UIC UIC 16-6
6
Belmont BEL 11-11
Winner
UIC UIC
16-6
8
Final
6
Belmont BEL
11-11
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
UIC UIC 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 4 2 8 10 0
Belmont BEL 0 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 0 6 10 0

W: GOULD, Zak (2-0) L: DUBY, Bill (1-2) S: Lawler, Reece (5)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Baseball Opens Missouri Valley Conference Play With Dramatic Victory

Flames Conquer Bruins in Series Opener Friday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (March 22, 2024) – The UIC baseball team (14-6, 1-0 MVC) opened Missouri Valley Conference play Friday afternoon, as it took on Belmont (11-11, 0-1 MVC) at E.S. Rose Park in Nashville. In a back-and-forth affair, the Flames took a dramatic victory, hitting two solo home runs in the top of the ninth to earn the victory. UIC now boasts a 10-2 record in the month of March.
 
COACH'S COMMENTS


GAME SUMMARY
  • The Flames jumped out to an early lead in Friday's series opener, as they took advantage of four straight walks to bring home Rayth Petersen (Barrington, Ill./Morton College) to lead 1-0 after one inning. AJ Henkle (Huntley, Ill./McHenry County College) drove home the game's second run in the top of the second inning, bringing home Carson Roberts (Winfield, Ill./College of DuPage) to give UIC a 2-0 lead.
  • Dillon Schueler (Rock Falls, Ill./Sauk Valley CC) struck out seven in four and 1/3 innings pitched Friday, before exiting the game in the fifth due to injury. All three of the Bruins runs scored in the bottom of the fifth inning were credited to Schueler.
  • After putting up three runs in the fifth, the Bruins added three more runs in the seventh off relief pitcher Zak Gould (Channahon, Ill./Joliet Catholic). Gould earned the victory in the game, pitching three and 2/3 innings and striking out three.
  • Entering the eighth inning trailing 6-2, the Flames battled back to tie the game in the top of the eighth, thanks to a pair of two-RBI triples from James Harris (Chicago, Ill./Gwendolyn Brooks) and AJ Henkle.
  • UIC held the Bruins scoreless in the bottom of the eighth and entered the ninth in a 6-6 tie. Ryan Nagelbach (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) drove the second pitch he saw to lead off the inning over the right-center field wall, giving the Flames a 7-6 advantage. Two batters later, Kendall Ewell (Calumet City, Ill./Kentucky) launched his team-leading fourth home run of the season, giving UIC the 8-6 lead.
  • Reece Lawler (Gurnee, Ill./Iowa) retired the Bruins in order to secure the save in the ninth, his Missouri Valley Conference-leading fifth of the year, giving UIC the 8-6 win.
 
The Flames and Bruins will continue their three-game series Saturday afternoon in Nashville, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. CT. Saturday's game can be seen live on ESPN+, and live stats are available via the schedule page.

For more information on UIC Athletics and UIC baseball, visit UICFlames.com. Fans can also follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_Baseball and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_baseball and @uicflames).
 
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