Tito Garza worked 7 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, while Mike Domenick cracked a two-run homer in the eighth to propel North Park to a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over Benedictine.
The game got off to a rocky start for the Vikings. Starting pitcher Joel Bonnett walked two batters and hit another in the bottom of the first but managed to escape without giving up a run. In the second, the Eagles did not miss out on a second chance, as Bonnett hit the leadoff batter, walked two more before giving up three consecutive hits for a 3-0 Benedictine lead. Coach Luke Johnson then summoned Garza from the bullpen, who promptly struck out the first batter he faced to end the second inning.
Garza was outstanding for the rest of the game. He scattered three hits over the next seven innings, walking two while striking out six. No Eagle batter reached second base until the eighth. He wrapped up the contest with an exciting ninth inning: after the leadoff batter walked and moved to third on a sacrifice and a wild pitch, Garza induced two groundouts to preserve the win.
The Viking batters, still in a bit of offensive funk after Monday’s doubleheader at Webster, had some difficulties coming up with the big hit. They stranded multiple runners in the second, third, and fourth innings, finally breaking through with a run in the fifth against Benedictine lefty Louis Soto: Domenick, Andy Athans, and Wade Yunker cracked consecutive two-out singles to cut the deficit to 3-1. In the seventh, Domenick hit a lead-off single, moved up on Athans’ sacrifice, took third on a passed ball, and scored on a rundown when a throw from the Eagles’ third baseman hit Domenick in the back. The Vikings finally overtook the host Eagles in the eighth when Nick Marino reached on a fielder’s choice, stole second and took third on an errant throw, and was along for the ride when Domenick launched a long home run - his third of the season - to right-center that bounced off the scoreboard.
Garza (1-0) picked up a hard-earned win for his relief efforts. The hitting attack was led by Domenick (3-for-5, three runs scored, two RBIs), Ryan Javech (also 3-for-5 with a double), Yunker (2-for-5), and Brian Staatz (2-for-4).
The Vikings (8-4) host UW-Superior for a Saturday doubleheader.
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