06/13/2018 12:10 AM -
WEDNESDAY’S GAME:
NWI Oilmen (4-7)
at Southland Vikings (6-3)
June 13, 2018 • 5 p.m. • Chicago Heights, Ill.
Broadcast: Oilmen Broadcasting Network (Facebook Live)
Pitching Matchup
NWI LHP Sawyer Allen (Hillsdale College / Fair Oaks, Ind.) vs. Southland RHP John Hendry (University of Indianapolis / Park Ridge, Ill.)
For Starters
After playing in the 300th game in Oilmen history on Tuesday, the Oilmen will head to Hap Bruno Field on Wednesday evening. Tuesday’s game between the Oilmen and Crestwood Panthers at Howie Minas Field just kept going. And going, and going, and going – all the way to until the 15th inning when Cory Krolikowski’s go-ahead single stood as the Oilmen held on for a 7-6 win when Crestwood stranded the tying run at third in the bottom of the 15th. The two teams traded 14th-inning runs after neither team had scored since the eighth. That tied for the second-longest game in Oilmen history behind only a 16-inning 3-2 loss to Lexington at Oil City Stadium on July 18, 2014. The Oilmen also went 15 innings in a 13-12 loss to DuPage County at home on June 30, 2012, a game that spanned 5 hours, 5 minutes. Tuesday was the longest road game in team history and the longest win in team history in terms of innings played.
Inside the Oilmen
Chris Baker’s four doubles put him in a three-way tie for the MCL lead. Three of them came in one game at Bloomington. Nate Montgomery and Joliet’s Jeremiah Lebron are the only players in the MCL with multiple home runs this season. Montgomery is one of four players in the league with 12 or more runs scored and the other three all play for DuPage County. He’s in a three-way tie for second behind only Danny Gleaves. Baker’s 11 walks are third in the league behind a pair of Hounds. Nick Figus has a .600 OBP, second in the league behind Gleaves. Lefty Sawyer Allen will get the start for the Oilmen on Wednesday, his first start of the season. He is 0-2 with a 5.00 ERA. His most recent outing was in relief against the Vikings, when he allowed three runs on seven hits over 4 1/3 innings on June 7.
Inside the Vikings
Southland will attempt to get back on track after back-to-back losses for the first time this season. The Vikings saw their six-game winning streak come to a halt when Crestwood gained an 11-10 victory at Hap Bruno Field on Saturday, then DuPage County topped Southland 6-4 on Tuesday. This will mark the third time the Vikings have played the Oilmen, and once again it will be RHP John Hendry getting the start. He picked up the win after allowing three hits and no walks in six shutout innings on June 1 in Chicago Heights before a much different outing on June 7, when he was taken off the hook and got no decision after allowing 10 runs (nine earned) on eight hits and three walks in 2 1/3 innings. Southland’s Will Smithey leads the league in batting average at .528.
About the Matchup
This is the third meeting of the 2018 season between the Oilmen and the Vikings with Southland winning each of the first two, 7-1 and 13-10. The most recent matchup saw Southland come back from nine runs down with a nine-run inning to tie the game. The Vikings eventually made it 12 unanswered runs to seal the win. The Oilmen have played the Vikings more than any other MCL opponent. Amazingly, an all-time series that has seen 60 matchups between the two teams is split right down the middle, with each club owning 30 wins.
Click here to view full Oilmen game notes.
