The UIS baseball team split a doubleheader with Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL) on Friday, winning the opener 10-7 before dropping the second game 10-7 in seven innings. The Prairie Stars are now 9-10 overall and 4-5 in Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) play, while the Tritons improved to 17-7 overall and 7-3 in the GLVC.

GAME ONE | UIS 10, UMSL 7

• UIS opened the series with a 10-7 victory, powered by four home runs and strong relief pitching. The first three hits of the game were home runs, as Noah Caceres launched the first of the day, UMSL answered with a solo shot, and Ivan Dahlberg followed with another homer for UIS.
• The Prairie Stars added three more runs in the fourth inning with back-to-back home runs. UMSL responded with three runs of its own on an error, a double steal, and a triple while Esteban Hernandez was still on the mound.
• Michael Paule's seventh double of the season in the sixth inning helped UIS extend its lead. Paule later scored on an Ethan Bowers single, and the Stars added two insurance runs in the seventh after a pair of hits, two fielder's choices, a walk, and a wild pitch.
• Hernandez exited in the seventh with two runners on, and Jack Tobin entered in relief. UMSL tied the game at 7-7 with a two-run triple, but UIS regained the lead with two runs in the seventh. Tobin and Austin Loberger each faced four batters before Seth Masters came in to close out the final two innings, allowing two hits and striking out two to secure his fourth consecutive save.
• Mark Kattula led the offense with a 3-for-5 performance, while four other Prairie Stars contributed home runs in the win.
• Tobin (2-0) earned the win while Masters notched his fourth save of the season.

GAME TWO | UMSL 10, UIS 7 (7 Inn.)

• UMSL bounced back in game two with a 10-7 win in a seven-inning contest. Mark Kattula singled and advanced to third on a throwing error before scoring on Dahlberg's sacrifice fly to give UIS an early 1-0 lead.
• UMSL responded with three hits and a walk in the first inning to score two runs, then added a third on a fielder's choice to lead 3-1 after one. UIS trimmed the deficit in the second inning when Mack Clark doubled and scored on a wild pitch, but the Stars left two runners stranded.
• The Tritons extended their lead to 5-2 with two more runs in the bottom of the second. UIS tied the game at 5-5 in the third inning, highlighted by Clark's second double of the game. Ben Benoit retired three straight batters after allowing one hit to keep the game tied.
• UMSL took control again in the fourth, scoring three runs to take an 8-5 lead. UIS closed the gap in the sixth after an Ethan Bowers solo home run, followed by a Ty Hollandsworth walk and a Kattula single that brought in another run to make it 8-7. The Prairie Stars loaded the bases but were unable to capitalize.
• The Tritons added two more runs in the sixth, one on a sacrifice fly and another on an RBI single combined with a throwing error for a 10-7 advantage. UIS threatened again in the seventh as Bowers singled and Hollandsworth doubled, but the Stars left two runners stranded to end the game.
• Kattula led UIS with a perfect 3-for-3 outing and 1 RBI. Bowers and Clark recorded two hits apiece, and six different players drove in runs.
• Benoit (1-4) took the loss after allowing eight runs, six earned, and striking out three over 3.0 innings. Kannon Walker provided two scoreless innings in relief, while Jacob Goss allowed two earned runs in his inning of work.

Up Next
The series will conclude on Saturday with another doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m.