Box Score

KANKAKEE, Ill. - It took longer than planned, but the WolfPack and Raiders finally got on the field and played their Region IV tournament game. Two rain delays and six hours after the game started, the WolfPack walked off the field with an 18-12 win.

The rain kept both teams off of the field on Thursday, so both teams were anxious to get their tournament started. On Thursday, it stayed dry just long enough for Kankakee Community College to defeat Elgin Community College 7-1.

With the win, the WolfPack will play Kankakee at noon on May 22. Elgin and Oakton will face off at 9 a.m. on the same day. The loser of the Kankakee/Madison College game will then play the winner of the Elgin/Oakton game at 3 p.m. The championship game(s) will then be pushed back to Sunday, May 23 at noon and 30 minutes after that game if needed.

The WolfPack scored in seven of the nine innings and put up seven runs in the ninth inning in the win over Oakton. This was the third time the WolfPack played Oakton this year and the third time they defeated them.

There was a short rain delay early in the game where the tarp was unrolled, but it never made it onto the infield. It was rolled back up after a short rain. The second time the tarp was brought out, it made its way to the infield where it covered the field for over an hour.

The tarp was brought out at the close of the fifth inning where the WolfPack held a 10-6 lead. Parker Schrage came in for relief of Josh Jaro, who started the game and got the win. Schrage got the one batter he faced before the rain delay out and the inning came to close. He continued to pitch a solid 2.2 innings before and after the delay.

The WolfPack put up six more runs than the Raiders despite getting out hit by their opponents 20-17.

The seven runs in the ninth inning were much needed for the WolfPack as they allowed four runs in the bottom of the ninth to the Raiders. All seven runs in the ninth inning for the WolfPack came with no runners on base and two outs.

In the slick outfield, Kevin Wild, Kendall Frank and John Perszyk all made some spectacular catches and throws in the outfield. Perszyk had a big momentum changing play in the seventh inning. He caught a fly ball and made the throw to Brent Kakwitch, who made the relay to Luke Marwitz and he tagged out the runner for a double play to get out of a jam and hold Oakton scoreless for the inning.

The WolfPack bats were largely supported by Justin Scanlon, Kakwitch and Marwitz. Kakwitch was 3-for-4 with two home runs and 5 RBIs. It was his third multi-home run game of the year. Scanlon was 2-for-5, drove in three runs and hit a home run. Marwitz drove in four runs on 3-for-5 hitting for the WolfPack.

Tyler Jones (8-1) is the probable starting pitcher for the WolfPack against Kankakee Community College. Jones threw a complete game in his last start, a 6-0 win over Blackhawk College in the Region IV Sectional Tournament. He struck out eight batters in the complete game shutout.

The WolfPack are 1-1 against the Cavaliers this season. Both games were played in Madison. The WolfPack lost the first game 6-2 and won the second meeting 13-1. The teams will face off Saturday, May 22 at noon in Kankakee, IL, the winner will advance to the championship game of the Region IV Tournament. No rain is expected to disrupt the tournament on Saturday.