Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
Purdue Northwest rolled to back-to-back wins over St. Francis (Ill.) this weekend, outscoring the Saints 22-2 across the two games. Behind stellar pitching, explosive offense, and mistake-free defense, the Pride improved to 13-15 on the season with a 13-1 win in Game One and a 9-1 victory in Game Two.
The Basics

• Records: Purdue Northwest (13-15), St. Francis (Ill.) (17-22)
• Location: Hammond, Indiana
• Non-conference game.

The Breakdown
Game One: W (13-1) – 7 Innings

• Doug Loden (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) sparked the Pride's offense with a second-inning RBI single, part of a four-run frame.
• Drake Ballard (Louisville, Ky./Martha Laynes Collins) drove in two runs and scored twice, anchoring the heart of the order.
• Kam Earley (Pendleton, Ind./Pendleton Heights) added three RBIs, including a two-run single in the sixth.
• Ethan Imlach (Mokena, Ill./Mount Carmel) doubled and stole a base, scoring twice.
• Mitchell Stanton (South Chicago Heights, Ill./Marian Catholic) earned the win with five dominant innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four.
• Conor Pangburn (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) pitched the final two frames, giving up one run on three hits.
• St. Francis was led by A. Mielcar's RBI single in the seventh for their lone run.
• Q. McGuir took the loss, giving up four runs (one earned) over two innings of work.
• The Pride broke open the game in the second inning when Doug Loden (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) singled home A.J. Reid to open the scoring. An error and two walks helped PNW extend the lead to 4-0, capped by a sacrifice fly from Brayden Barrett (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton).
• In the third, Purdue Northwest piled on four more runs, aided by multiple St. Francis defensive miscues and a string of patient at-bats. Kam Earley (Pendleton, Ind./Pendleton Heights) and A.J. Reid both drew bases-loaded walks, pushing the lead to 8-0.
• Ballard delivered another RBI in the fourth with a single through the right side, and the Pride added two more in the fifth thanks to a wild sequence of wild pitches that plated both Imlach and Loden.
• Earley closed the scoring in the sixth with a two-run single, pushing the advantage to 13-0.
• St. Francis finally got on the board in the seventh on a single from A. Mielcar, but it wasn't nearly enough to threaten the Pride's commanding lead.
• Purdue Northwest tallied eight hits and drew ten walks while committing no errors. The pitching staff combined to strike out six and allowed just four hits.

The Breakdown
Game Two: W (9-1) – 9 Innings

• Ethan Imlach (Mokena, Ill./Mount Carmel) led the offense with three hits and three RBIs, including an RBI double in the eighth and a run-scoring single in the ninth.
• Jax Kalemba (Chicago, Ill./Andrean) crushed a three-run homer in the fifth inning to break the game open.
• Drake Ballard (Louisville, Ky./Martha Laynes Collins) continued his strong series with three hits, two runs scored, a stolen base, and an RBI single in the fourth.
• Kam Earley (Pendleton, Ind./Pendleton Heights) added a two-hit, one-RBI performance and swiped a base.
• Jayden Smith (Allegan, Mich./Allegan) went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.
• Dan Puplava (Portage, Ind./Portage) recorded two hits and scored twice.
• Starting pitcher J. Nightingale improved to 2-1 with five shutout innings, allowing five hits and striking out two.
• Doug Loden (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) and Owen Walkowiak (Crown Point, Ind./Andrean) combined for four innings of relief, allowing just one run and striking out four.
• St. Francis plated their only run in the seventh on an RBI double from Ethan Fleming.
• The Pride added insurance runs in the eighth and ninth innings, with five players recording multi-hit performances.
• PNW stole four bases and turned one double play while committing one error.
• St. Francis used six pitchers in the loss and committed one defensive miscue.

 
Up Next:
Pride baseball next hits the field on April 15, as they take on Lewis University at Dowling Park. Game time is set for 3:00 PM CT