CRYSTAL LAKE, ILL. - Following a two-year hiatus, the Madison College baseball team returned to its place on the throne as champions of the NJCAA Region IV Division II Tournament. The third-seeded WolfPack opened with a 5-2 win over second-seeded Kankakee Community College, then followed with back-to-back victories over top-seed and host McHenry County College by scores of 4-2 and 10-3, the last of which clinched the program's seventh Region IV title. The championship qualifies Madison College for its eighth NJCAA Division II World Series under head coach Mike Davenport, and its 13th overall NJCAA World Series appearance.

Game #1 - Friday, May 18: (3) Madison College 5, (2) Kankakee Community College 2 (9 innings)

Facing the defending national champions, the WolfPack slowly pulled away with several one-run innings. In the second, freshman Adam LaRock reached second base on an error, stole third, and scored on a dropped third strike. The third inning saw first year outfielder Cam Cratic reach second base on an error, advance to third on another error, and score when Nick Gile single to left. The lead reached 3-0 in the fourth inning after LaRock led off with a bunt single, stole two bases, and crossed home on a sacrifice fly by Chase Scharnek. Madison College loaded the bases on two walks and a single in the seventh, and was able to plate another run as Logan Michaels produced a sac fly that scored Scharnek. A pair of ground outs followed and left two more runs in scoring position.

The Cavaliers cut the deficit in half with two runs in the eighth that chased starter Matt Hamilton from the game, but the 'Pack added an insurance run in the ninth with bases loaded passed ball to make it 5-2. Freshman Brandon Komar closed out the win with four-batter bottom of the ninth to send Madison College to the semifinals.

Hamilton, a freshman from Oak Creek, Wisconsin, improved to 7-1 with his second consecutive victory in the postseason. He went 7 2/3 innings and allowed two earned runs on eighth hits while striking out six batters. Komar posted three K's and walked one in his scoreless inning-and-a-third.

The WolfPack posted seven hits with Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, native Nick Gile leading the way with two base knocks, a run scored, and one batted in. LaRock scored a team-leading two runs. Four different players each recorded a RBI.

Madison College went 2-1 against KCC in 2018 and now own an 18-16 all-time record against the #9-ranked Cavaliers, including a 10-2 mark in postseason games.

Game #2 - Saturday, May 19: (3) Madison College 4, (1) McHenry County College 2 (9 innings)

The semifinals saw Madison College square off with 2016 Region IV champion McHenry County College, which entered the postseason as the #7-ranked team in the NJCAA Division II Poll. Once again, the WolfPack struck first with two runs in both the second and third innings. Freshman Adam LaRock opened the second inning with a double to right, and after stealing third, was able to score on a single to center by first year infielder Walker Jenkins. Two batters later another freshman, Cam Cratic, hit a hard ground ball through the right side that plated Jenkins for a 2-0 advantage. LaRock, an Eau Claire, Wisconsin, native, roped another double to center, one that nearly produced a run as Nathan Aide was thrown out trying to score. Jarrett Scheelk followed with a double of his own to right field, scoring LaRock. And Jenkins capped the scored with a RBI single up the middle to bring in Scheelk for a 4-0 lead that would be good enough.

Sophomore Jack Eagan (5-1) scattered five hits and five walks over six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, bringing the Wautoma, Wisconsin, native within seven K's of tying the program's single season strikeout record. Second year righthander Jon-Anthony Caban entered in relief and ran into trouble in the eight. Fellow sophomore Jake Kopp replaced Caban, allowed a single to his lone batter, and freshman Brandon Komar's wild pitch brought another run in before he closed out the inning. Caban was credited for two runs on a hit, a walk, and a strike out. Komar picked up his fourth save as he held the Scots without a hit or a run in 1 2/3 innings. The product of Elkhorn, Wisconsin, did record one strikeout.

Five different players enjoyed multiple hits in the game as the WolfPack racked up 14 total hits. Walker Jenkins, a former Sun Prairie HS athlete, registered his first career four-hit game, producing two RBI and a run scored. Cratic, who played high school baseball at Madison East HS, went 3 for 5 with a RBI. Logan Michaels, LaRock, and Scheelk each had two hits, with LaRock's two doubles each leading to a run scored.

Game #3 - Sunday, May 20: (3) Madison College 10, (1) McHenry County College 3 (9 innings)

One win away from it's first Region IV crown in three years, Madison College drew McHenry County College for a second consecutive game after the Scots eliminated Kankakee with a 6-3 win in the loser's bracket. For the third straight game, th WolfPack jumped out to an early lead thanks to a pair of big innings. With two runners on and two outs in the bottom of the first, freshman first baseman Jerry LaSaint singled to left to allow Walker Jenkins to score from second. First year outfielder Adam LaRock continued his outstanding weekend with a two-run double to center that scored Logan Michaels and LaSaint for a 3-0 lead. An inning later, it was Michaels on the delivery end of a two-run hit, singling to center to bring home Cam Cratic and Jenkins to make it 5-0. The lead grew to six runs in the fourth on another Michaels single to left, plating Chase Scharnek.

McHenry County College (44-14) tallied their first runs of the game against starter Nate Brown in the fifth to pull with four. The WolfPack added another run in the sixth and three more in the seventh to complete the scoring. Sophomore righthander Jake Kopp entered the game with one out in the eighth and induced an inning-ending double play, then returned in the ninth to go 1-2-3, the last two outs coming on back-to-back strikeouts to complete the championship run.




Sophomore Nate Brown (4-5), who pitched for the 2017 NCAA Champion Florida Gators before transferring, went seven innings and allowed three runs, one of which was earned, on six hits and two walks. The Hartland, Wisconsin, native struck out eight batters before giving way to Jon-Anthony Caban and Kopp for the final two innings.

The WolfPack outhit the Scots by a 10-6 differential as all nine position players finished with a hit. Sophomore catcher Logan Michaels went 3 for 5 with a team-high three runs batted in and one scored. LaRock was 1 for 3 with a walk, a double, a run scored, and two driven in. He finished the weekend 4 for 11 with three doubles, two RBI, and five runs scored. Cratic, Jenkins, and LaSaint each scored a pair of runs, with LaSaint also posting a RBI.

Logan Michaels, a DeForest, Wisconsin, native, was selected the Region IV Division II Tournament Most Valuable Player. Michaels batted .500 with six hits in a dozen at-bats, one walk, four runs batted in, and one run scored. Behind the plate, the two-time all-conference selection collected three assists, caught two runners stealing, and allowed just one passed ball over 27 innings. Head coach Mike Davenport was named Region IV Division II Coach of the Year for the seventh time.





Up Next:

Madison College (34-20/Receiving Votes in NJCAA Division II Poll) will make its eighth NJCAA Division II Baseball World Series appearance in Enid, Oklahoma, and its first since 2015. The WolfPack first qualified in 2005, and then strung together a NJCAA Division II record six consecutive appearances from 2010 through 2015, finishing in third place on three occasions (2011, 2013, 2014). Overall, Madison College has qualified for the NJCAA World Series 12 prior times, with the first five instances coming between 1994 and 1999 at the Division III level. Then Hall of Fame coach and current Madison College softball coach Leo Kalinowski won three straight national championships in 1995, 1996, and 1997. Current baseball coach Mike Davenport, the all-time winningest coach in Madison College history with a record of 551-234-3 over his 14 years, also won a NJCAA Division II National Championship in 1999 with Kishwaukee College. 

The tournament seeding, matchups, and game times will be announced in the coming days. For more information, check out 2018 NJCAA Division II Baseball World Series Information.

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