Centerfielder Bob Dainton reached base three times Wednesday, but he scored only once in the Northwestern baseball team’s extra-inning 6-4 loss to Lewis University.
The other two times, Dainton was left at third base — like teammate Andy Adams.
Adams, 90 feet from winning the game, stood on third in the bottom of the tenth inning with two outs and shortstop Jeremy Kurella at the plate.
Kurella laced a liner to left that would have scored Adams and ended the game, but the ball hooked two feet foul. Kurella then ended the inning with a flyout to left.
In all, the Wildcats (13-7) left 10 men in scoring position during their home opener. They had their opportunities, catcher Joe Hietpas said, but they could not capitalize.
“We had 17 hits and only four runs, and that’s pathetic,” Hietpas said. “We had runners in scoring position virtually all game.”
Even when they were down two runs in the bottom of the eleventh, the Cats had a good chance to tie — and even win — the game.
Dainton hit a one-out single to center, and Hietpas followed him with a single to left. A Pat Thompson grounder to second should have led to a game-ending double play, but Lewis second baseman Todd Walters bobbled the ball and each NU runner reached base safely.
A strike out left the bases loaded with two outs, bringing outfielder Brandon Ackley to the plate. When Ackley popped up a ball in foul territory on the first-base side, the game appeared to be over once more. But the ball bounced off of Lewis first baseman Scott Ingram’s body, keeping the Cats alive.
Ackley then drove a 1-2 pitch to deep center, but outfielder Jeff Johnson made a lunging grab to rob him of extra bases and NU of a potential come-from-behind victory.
“If somebody’s got a ball in their hand and we have a bat, we have to put the ball in play,” coach Paul Stevens said. “If we get one of those hits in one of those scenarios, we score three or four runs. Unfortunately, we just didn’t get some key hits in some necessary spots.”
Coming off last week’s confidence-building trip to Florida, where the Cats went 8-1 in the warm weather, Stevens said Wednesday’s loss — on a cold and cloudy Evanston day — left the team hungry at the start of the Big Ten season.
“This is something that’s going to eat at them a little bit,” Stevens said. “You’re going to see a team come out playing with as much fire as they’ve been playing with for a couple of weeks now on Friday (against Illinois).”
HIET-PARADE: Hietpas continued his torrid hitting Wednesday, going 3-for-6 with an RBI. Hietpas is hitting at a .472 clip so far this season.
The catcher’s 7-for-13 performance in Florida earned him Big Ten co-Player of the Week honors. But Hietpas said the upcoming conference season will truly gauge how he is playing.
“No matter how well you’re hitting, this stuff doesn’t matter because teams aren’t scouting you,” said Hietpas of pre-Big Ten play. “When you play a team four times, they get a lot better idea how to pitch to guys and they work the weaknesses. They have advance scouting reports before they even get here.”
FIGHTING THE ILLINI: Stevens named a positive in the wake of NU’s loss Wednesday: His players got a game under their belts heading into a four-game series with Illinois this weekend.
Stevens gave pitcher Ben Dodd six innings of work against Lewis, and said NU’s defense played well.
“If we can pitch and play defense we’re going to be in a lot of ball games, and we’re pitching and we’re playing defense right now,” Stevens said. “Shoot, we’re hitting .350 as a team right now, so I think we’re prepared (for conference play).”
Stevens said his team is ready for Illinois, one of the teams picked to win the Big Ten this season. He said the team would not be demoralized after the loss to Lewis.
“Our guys understand that we can play with anybody,” Stevens said.
