Saint Xavier University

Joliet, Ill. – The No. 3 seed Saint Xavier University baseball team (35-19/21-11) forced the in-necessary game in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) Baseball Tournament Championship, defeating top-seeded St. Ambrose University (Iowa) in the first game by a score of 6-3, however the Cougars attempt at repeating as CCAC Tournament champions came up short with a 6-4 loss in the night cap. Senior infielder Beau Polickey (Oak Lawn, Ill./Heartland/Brother Rice) and sophomore outfielder Parker Violett (Maple Park, Ill./Kaneland) each had two RBIs to aid senior pitcher Nick Krueger (Clifton, Ill./Danville Area/Clifton Central), who pitched 7.0 innings for the win (5-1), and junior designated hitter/pitcher Noah Dreier (Brookfield, Wis./Brookfield Central) picked up the save. In the second game, senior outfielder Shea Zbrozek (Bloomington, Ill./Danville Area/Normal Community) laced a three-run double with two outs in the bottom of the 9^th, and SXU had the winning run at-bat, but they grounded out to end the contest.

Game One:

• Polickey was 1-for-4 overall with a double.
• Violett also went 1-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base.
• Junior infielder John Simecek (Twinsburg, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) had a hit in four at-bats with an RBI and a walk.
• Zbrozek finished 2-for-5 with a double and a run scored.
• Krueger allowed three hits, three earned runs with five walks and seven strikeouts.
• Dreier earned his second save of the season, pitching 2.0 innings of relief with one hit, two walks and four strikeouts.
• Polickey sliced a two-run double to right field to give Saint Xavier the lead in the top of the 2^nd.
• The Fighting Bees tied the game in the next half inning with an RBI single and a sacrifice fly.
• In the top of the 3^rd, Simecek drove in a run with a base hit and a run scored on a double play.
• SAU cut the deficit to one run in the top of the 8^th off a Cougar error.
• Violett took a pitch the other way to right field, collecting two RBI, in the top of the 9^th.
• St. Ambrose would load the bases with two outs in the bottom of the 9^th, however Dreier got a called third strike to end the game.

Game Two:

• Zbrozek was 1-for-5 overall.
• Violett had three hits in three trips to the plate with a pair of steals.
• Simecek went 1-for-5 with an RBI.
• Junior outfielder Ben Meier (Beechwood, Ky./Lincoln Trail/Beechwood) scored twice with a walk while going 1-for-3.
• Senior pitcher Trent Markezich (Mount Olive, Ill./Mount Olive) opened the game, throwing an inning with a walk.
• Senior pitcher Osvaldo Ballesteros Jr. (Berwyn, Ill./St. Laurence) tossed 1.1 innings, allowing four hits, four earned runs and a walk to suffer the loss (2-1).
• Junior pitcher Cole Martz (Huntington, Ind./Kankakee/Huntington North) made his first relief appearance of the year, working 1.2 innings with two walks and four strikeouts.
• Senior pitcher Gannon Burns (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) logged 3.0 innings out of the bullpen, giving up two hits, two earned runs, two walks and striking out four batters.
• Sophomore pitcher Tyler Deluca (Minooka, Ill./Minooka Community) worked an inning with a strikeout.
• Graduate student pitcher Carter Kopp (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan/Bishop James Mahoney) pitched the top of the 9^th, posting two strikeouts.
• The Fighting Bees scored four runs in the top of the 3^rd on three RBI singles and an RBI double.
• SXU got a run back in the home half of the frame, lining an RBI single back up the middle.
• SAU added a run in the top of the 5^th on an RBI fielder's choice, and another in the top of the 7^th on an RBI base hit.
• In the bottom of the 9^th, three walks loaded the bases and Zbrozek slugged a 1-2 pitch into the gap in left center to pull Saint Xavier within two at 6-4. A base hit put runners on the corners before the final out was made.

Saint Xavier (35-19/21-11 CCAC) waits to see if it earns an at-large bid into the NAIA National Championship Opening Round when the national office announces the field on its YouTube channel on Tuesday, May 6 at 4:00 pm.