Hawks, Prairie Stars split doubleheader as bullpen, energetic offense engineer comeback in nightcap

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Chase Gockel’s job Saturday was to keep the Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader from teetering to the point of no return.

Three scoreless innings did the trick.

After the Illinois-Springfield baseball team won the first game of the twinbill 9-3 by scoring three times in both the sixth and seventh inning, the 21st-ranked Prairie Stars tagged Quincy University left-hander Griffin Kirn for three runs in both the first and second innings of the nightcap.

Suddenly, the No. 7 Hawks were on the verge of disaster.

Instead, Gockel shut down the Prairie Stars and the Hawks, with one of the best offenses in NCAA Division II, scored in six of their seven at-bats to earn a 13-6 victory and a much-needed split. The teams will wrap up their four-game series with a doubleheader Sunday at the UIS baseball field.

Gockel allowed one hit, struck out three and walked two over three innings, then handed the ball to Carter Endisch, who tossed two scoreless innings with five strikeouts, one walk and no hits allowed. Kirn had allowed six runs, five hits and three walks with three strikeouts and two wild pitches in two innings.

Austin Simpson’s two-run single in the first inning got the QU offense started and his two-run home run in the third pulled the Hawks within a run. 

Quincy (19-5, 8-2 GLVC) tied the game in the fourth and took the lead for good with a five-run fifth featuring a two-run single by J.D. Ortiz and back-to-back RBI singles by Lance Logsdon and Nolan Wosman.

Simpson went 3 for 4 with four RBIs, while Logsdon and Zach Parks had two hits apiece.

In the opener, QU ace Spencer Walker and UIS ace Cole Saner each allowed three runs, but Walker left after five innings and the bullpen struggled. Cruz Meier allowed five runs over 1⅔ innings, while Tyler Carpenter allowed a run, a walk and four wild pitches in 1⅓ innings.

Logsdon went 2 for 4 with a double and a home run, and Joe Huffman homered as the Hawks were limited to five hits in the opener. Asher Bradd went 4 for 6 with three runs scored for the Prairie Stars (21-7, 11-3 GLVC).