OLIVET ADVANCES TO THEIR THIRD CCAC TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP APPEARANCE IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS BESTING SAU 5-2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Olivet Nazarene | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 2 |
|
St. Ambrose | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
JOLIET, Ill. – The Olivet Nazarene University Baseball team earns a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship berth for the third time in the last four years after besting the St. Ambrose Fighting Bees Sunday night 5-2. Ethan Underwood pitched his sixth complete game while earning his 10th win of the year.
The Tigers took advantage of the Fighting Bees' mistakes to build a 4-0 lead. In the top of the first inning, a two-out error by SAU led to ONU loading the bases. Nolan Louis put the Purple and Gold on the scoreboard when a wild pitch allowed him to score. In the fifth inning, Nolan Louis beat out an errant throw from the St. Ambrose third baseman which allowed Jacob Bulthuis to cross home plate. Gunnar Pullins' RBI single turned into two runs when another off-target toss allowed the first baseman round the bases. The Davenport-based side totaled five errors for the contest, three of which led to Olivet runs.
Underwood was locked in from the start lasting the complete nine innings. The senior hurler allowed only four hits and two walks. He struck out three batters and ended the outing with no earned runs to his name. The Woodstock, Ga. native mowed through 34 batters faced, and of his 112 pitches, 74 were for strikes.
ONU's shutout lasted till the sixth inning when SAU reached the scoreboard. An Olivet throwing error with runners in scoring position gave the Navy and White their first score of the night. The Tigers restored their four-run lead after Bulthuis' double to left-center field drove in Robert Jackman. St. Ambrose attempted to conjure up a late-game rally in the bottom of the seventh inning scoring their second run, but Underwood retired seven of the remaining eight batters to secure the 5-2 win.
GAME VITALS
(No. 1) Olivet Nazarene (37-15, 27-3 CCAC) | (No. 2) St. Ambrose (33-13, 22-8 CCAC)
2022 CCAC Baseball Tournament Bracket
WHAT'S NEXT
With the win, the Tigers advance to the CCAC Tournament Championship tomorrow night. They await the winner of St. Ambrose and Judson. The first pitch is slated for 7 p.m. CST tomorrow night at DuPage Medical Field in Joliet, Ill. To follow along, visit ONUTigers.com.
--ONU—
*Contact: Patrick Kaindl, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, pkaindl@olivet.edu