WolfPack baseball highly ranked

Madison College baseball team remains ranked No. 3 in the NJCAA Division II

Madison College outfielder Dayton Rozinski-Hicks watches a pitch come in during a game against Rock Valley College on April 10 at home. Madison College won, 14-2.

Ross Litscher, Sports Editor

The Madison College baseball team entered Easter weekend with 17-3 records and a top three ranking in the NJCAA Division 2.
The team spent most of March on the road, playing in Arizona and in northern Illinois.
The Saturday before Easter, the WolfPack played a home conference doubleheader against rival Milwaukee Area Tech College and posted an 11-7 win.
Charlie Marion and Gabe Roessler each had big days, going three of four and two of three at bat. Marion added four RBIs for the WolfPack, who scored a run in every inning.
Game two was a lot more lopsided with Madison College winning, 11-2. The WolfPack jumped out to a 7-0 start in the first two innings and never looked back. Five players totaled multiple hits for the WolfPack in the game.
Madison College will be playing more home games now that the weather is getting warmer with about a month left of regular season play before the postseason starts.  The team now stands at 23-6 overall, with a 2-0 conference record.
Weather permitting, the WolfPack will play doubleheaders at home against the College of DuPage on April 19 and Carl Sandburg College on April 21.

Madison College 14, Kankakee Community College 5
After playing to a 5-5 tie after nine innings, Madison College scored nine runs in the 11th inning to beat Kankakee, 14-5, in the first game of a doubleheader on April 15. Clayton Slack led the WolfPack with three hits in the game, while Will Johannes hit a home run and Trace Kirchberg and Grant Ross doubled. Andres Kleinsek earned the win, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing just one run on three hits.

Kankakee Community College 7, Madison College 4
A late rally wasn’t enough as Madison College fell to Kankakee, 7-4, in the second game despite scoring three runs in the top of the seventh inning. Ross led the WolfPack with two hits, while he and Roessler both had doubles.

Madison College 11, Sauk Valley 10
After an early slugfest, it took an error, a wild pitch and a passed ball for Madison College to claim an 11-10 victory over Sauk Valley College in the first game of a doubleheader on April 14. The two teams scored 10 runs each in the first two innings, then didn’t score again until Grant Ross scored the winning run on a passed ball. Kirchberg led the WolfPack with three hits and two runs scored, while Dayton Rozinski-Hicks had two hits and scored three runs.

Madison College 15, Sauk Valley 8
Madison College scored three or more runs in four different innings to beat Sauk Valley, 15-8, in the second game of the doubleheader. The WolfPack had 18 hits in the game, led by Johannes who had three hits and four RBIs.

Bryant & Stratton College 3, Madison College 2
A two-run rally in the bottom of the ninth inning gave Bryant & Stratton College a 3-2 victory over visiting Madison College on April 12. The loss marred an excellent outing by freshman pitcher Michael Carpenter, who allowed just three runs on seven hits.

Bryant & Stratton College 10, Madison College 0
A 10-game winning streak came to a painful end for Madison College, with a 10-0 loss at home to Bryant & Stratton College on April 11. Madison College was held to just three hits in the game, while Bryant & Stratton had eight hits and eight bases on balls.

Madison College 14, Rock Valley 2
Madison College again had double figure hits and runs with a 14-2 victory over Rock Valley College at home on April 10. The WolfPack had 18 hits in the game, led by Roessler, Payton Frehner and Ryan Santi, who each had three hits. Kleinsek pitched the win allowing two runs on three hits with nine strikeouts in six innings.

Madison College 9, Waubonsee 5
Madison College scored nine runs on nine hits to post a 9-5 victory over Waubonsee on April 7 in the first game of a doubleheader in Sugar Grove, Ill. Evan Iwinski had two hits for the WolfPack including a double, while Roessler added a hit and two RBIs.

Madison College 7, Waubonsee 1
A four-run third inning let Madison College take the lead on its way to a 7-1 victory over Waubonsee in the second game of the doubleheader. Roessler and Iwinski had two hits in the game, with Roessler hitting a triple. Liam Stumpf earned the win, pitching six innings and allowing just one run on five hits.