CHICAGO – Trailing late Friday at Curtis Granderson Stadium, UIC (13-21-1, 8-5 MVC) rallied to open its Missouri Valley Conference series with a 4-3 win over Valparaiso (9-24, 2-8 MVC).
Early into the game, fans found themselves once again in a pitcher's duel to open the series, as junior
Mason Lei was dealing against Valparaiso's Adam Guazzo. The Beacons opened the top of the second with Louie Keggereis hitting a fly ball that had some distance, before junior
Vidal Colon grabbed the ball out of the air on the warning track, robbing a home run.
The Flames had a strong chance to score in the bottom of the third inning when a trio of one-out singles from Colon, senior
Will Flanigan and junior
Alexander Wright loaded the bases, before Valparaiso left them stranded on the base path with back-to-back outs to end the frame.
After Valparaiso plated three in the top of the fourth, Lei settled down and return to his groove. Supported by stellar defense, including another diving grab in center from Colon, Lei managed to hold the Beacons to just two more hits for the rest of the game.
The Flames got on the board late in the game, in the bottom of the seventh after Guazzo was pulled by the Beacons. Freshman
Sean Cody collected a one-out walk, and was soon moved into scoring position after a single to right field off the bat of Wright. In the next at-bat, on a 1-1 pitch, Colon crushed a ball to centerfield for a double, scoring Cody and pushing Wright all the way to third. Colon and Wright would later score in the inning when Flanigan would poke a single to the outfield, scoring the pair of runners to tie it up 3-3.
After Lei retired the side in the top of the eight, the Flames took their first lead of the game when Cody would crush a single to right field, scoring junior
Thomas Curry from second base. With a 4-3 lead and the ball still in his hand, Lei would secure the win for the Flames with his sixth and final strikeout of the night, as Valparaiso's Gavin Bennett would watch strike three to end the game.
In his first complete game in a UIC uniform, Lei pitched nine innings, striking out six, allowing nine hits, three earned runs and not walk a single Beacon in his outing.
The entire play-by-play and box score can be found
here.
UP NEXT!
The Flames are back at Curtis Granderson Stadium Saturday afternoon, facing off against the Beacons at 2:05 p.m. (CT). The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available at UICFlames.com.
Fans interested in attending any UIC baseball home games can purchase their tickets on site at our ticket booth at gate one. Any group tickets or ticketing questions can be directed to the UIC Athletics Ticket Office by calling 312-413-UIC1 (8421) or emailing
athleticsticketing@uic.edu.
Saturday's game will also be our mini helmet giveaway, that fans can take home when gates open an hour before first pitch.
UIC Careers in Sports Day
Prior to UIC's Kids Day Game on April 24, the Flames will host a Career Day event inside the Flames Athletic Center from 9–11 a.m.
Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from UIC Athletics staff about their roles and the various career paths available in sports.
Due to space limitations, attendance is limited to the first 150 participants. To register, please email
Brian Davis at briand@uic.edu.
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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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