The Purdue Northwest baseball team picked up a pair of wins in a doubleheader against Lewis on Saturday, defeating the Flyers 12-9 in the opener before securing a 4-3 victory in game two at Brennan Field.

The Basics

• Records: Purdue Northwest (5-5), Lewis (5-11)
• Location: Romeoville, Illinois
• Non-conference game

The Breakdown
Game 1: W (12-9) (7 Innings)

• Purdue Northwest's offense erupted for 17 hits as the Pride held off a late rally from Lewis to take the opener.
• Brayden Barrett (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton) led the way, going 3-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBIs while also adding a triple and a stolen base. Joey Guiliano (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) also collected three hits, including two doubles, and drove in three runs.
• Denham Kozy (Munster, Ind./Munster) added a big swing with a two-run home run and finished with two hits and three RBIs, while Drew Kosteba (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) recorded three hits and a double. Owen Winters (Kouts, Ind./Kouts) scored three runs and added two hits and an RBI, and Braylon Holland (Hobart, Ind./Andrean) chipped in two hits and two runs scored.
• The Pride struck first in the opening inning when Barrett tripled and later scored on an RBI double by Guiliano.
• Purdue Northwest then broke the game open in the second inning with four runs. Barrett and Guiliano each delivered RBI singles before Billy Chidsey (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point) drove in two more with a base hit to give the Pride a 5-0 advantage.
• The Pride continued to swing the bats in the third. Kozy launched a two-run homer before Barrett and Guiliano each added RBI hits as Purdue Northwest extended the lead to 9-3.
• Lewis battled back in the fifth inning with six runs to tie the game at 9-9, highlighted by a three-run home run from Brian Twomey.
• Purdue Northwest answered immediately in the sixth when Brett Bounds (Morris, Ill./Morris Community) drove in the go-ahead run with an RBI single to make it 10-9.
• The Pride added insurance in the seventh inning as Winters delivered an RBI single and Kozy added another run-scoring hit to push the lead to 12-9.
• Colin Pfeifer (Morris, Ill./Morris Community) earned the win on the mound after tossing four innings with two strikeouts. Cody Hazzard (Mazon, Ill./Yorkville Christian) closed out the final two innings without allowing a run to secure the victory.

The Breakdown
Game 2: W (4-3) (7 Innings)

• Purdue Northwest used timely hitting and strong pitching late to complete the doubleheader sweep.
• Hunter Nolan (Apex, N.C./Enloe) provided an early spark with an RBI triple in the second inning that scored Tyler Blair (Munster, Ind./Munster) to give the Pride a 1-0 lead.
• The Pride added another run in the third when Braylon Holland (Hobart, Ind./Andrean) doubled and later scored on an RBI single from Brayden Barrett (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton) to extend the advantage to 2-0.
• Lewis responded with two runs in the fourth to tie the game before Purdue Northwest regained the lead in the fifth. Holland singled and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Drew Kosteba (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) to make it 3-2.
• After Lewis tied the game again in the bottom of the fifth, Guiliano delivered the decisive swing in the seventh inning with a solo home run to put the Pride back on top, 4-3.
• Ben Cash (Oak Lawn, Ill./Oak Lawn Community) started on the mound and worked 4.1 innings, allowing three runs while striking out two. Brett Bounds (Morris, Ill./Morris Community) earned the win and save in relief, tossing 2.2 scoreless innings with two strikeouts to close out the game.

Up Next
The Pride will continue their road stretch with their Florida spring break trip as they head to Lauderhill, Florida to take on University of Fort Lauderdale in a three game series.