Huskies get a doubleheader sweep, fall one short of series sweep against Ball State

By STEVE NITZ

It wasn’t your normal sweep, but the NIU baseball team will take it.

NIU took a doubleheader Saturday after Friday’s game at Ball State was rained out, but the Huskies weren’t able to sweep the series, as Sunday’s game was also rained out. It was the first MAC game NIU has lost to weather this season.

“I think it was a good weekend,” NIU head coach Ed Mathey said. “We did a lot of things pretty well.”

Trevor Feeney led the Huskies (23-23 overall, 14-9 MAC) with eight innings of one-run ball in the opener Saturday. Feeney earned his fifth win of the season and the 15th of his career in the 4-1 Huskies victory, taking fifth place on the NIU all-time wins list.

Feeney passed former major leaguer Brian Schmack, who pitched at NIU from 1992-95.

Shortstop Bobby Stevens came off a rough week to go 2-for-4 with two RBIs in the victory. Danny Reed and Jordin Hood added one RBI apiece.

“It was a good weekend overall for us,” Stevens said. “It’s tough to take two in a doubleheader.”

Stevens also contributed in the second game, going 2-for-5 with a home run. But it was third baseman Hood who did the most damage. Hood hit a two-run homer in the first inning to put the Huskies up 2-0.

With the score tied at five in the seventh and Jeff Thomas on first after drawing a walk, Hood connected for his second home run of the game to put the Huskies up 7-5.

Ball State (26-20, 11-9) would add a run in the seventh, but it wasn’t enough as Dan Atkenson pitched a scoreless eighth and Andy Deain came on to earn his second save of the day and eighth of the season with a scoreless ninth.

Starter Adam Holdenrid pitched 6 2/3 innings to improve his record to 5-3. NIU takes on Northern Iowa on Monday afternoon.