Box Score

The Carthage College baseball team (7-5, 0-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin), ranked 12th in the March 23 “D3baseball.com” poll, lost to Benedictine University (Ill., 2-5), 13-5, on Tuesday, March 23 at the Benedictine Sports Complex in Lisle, Ill.

Carthage pitcher Andy Pucher (So., Naperville, Ill./Central) couldn't escape the second inning, as the Eagles scored once in the first frame and five unearned runs in the second to take a 6-0 lead. The Red Men came back with three runs in the third to make it a 6-3 game. Benedictine scored once in the bottom of the third to go up, 7-3. Carthage scored twice in the top of the fifth to narrow the lead to 7-5, but the Eagles came right back with a five-spot in the bottom of the inning off reliever Brett McQuade (Jr., St. Charles, Ill./East) to go up by seven runs, 12-5. Benedictine tacked on a final run in the sixth off pitcher Matt Martinski (Fr., Des Plaines, Ill./Elk Grove).

The Eagles totaled 16 hits off four Carthage pitchers, with Danny Dahm (Jr., Morton, Ill./Skokie-Niles West) pitching a scoreless ninth inning. The loss went to Andy Pucher (0-1). Jake Thompson (1-0) went the distance for the Eagles and allowed five runs on eight hits and a walk, while striking out nine batters. Kevin Hendricks went three-for-five with three RBI for Benedictine. Trevor Whately (Sr., Fairbury, Ill./Prairie Central) went three-for-three with an RBI, and Joey Aiello (So., Libertyville, Ill.) went one-for-three with three RBI. The Red Men open at home on Saturday, March 27 versus Aurora University in a Noon game at the Carthage Baseball Field in Kenosha, Wis.