(ROMEOVILLE, Ill., May 6)—The McKendree University baseball team saw its 2017 season come to an end Saturday afternoon with a pair of losses in Great Lakes Valley Conference action at Lewis University. The host Flyers notched their second straight walk-off win over the Bearcats by taking a 4-3 decision in the opener before holding off McKendree 8-4 in the nightcap.
 
McKendree closes out its first season under the direction of head coach Danny Jackson with an overall record of 13-34. The Bearcats posted a 2-24 record against GLVC competition.
 
Appropriately, it was a trio of seniors making their final appearances in a McKendree uniform who led the way for the Bearcats. Infielders Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) and Matt Walsh (Wheaton, IL/Wheaton Warrenville South) each collected three hits in game one, while outfielder Jay Roberts (Plainfield, IL/Plainfield North) added three hits in the doubleheader for the Bearcats.
 
Lewis (16-34, 10-18 GLVC) took a 3-0 lead into the top of the seventh inning of game one when McKendree put together a rally to tie the contest in its final at-bat. Walsh reached on a one-out single and moved to second on a wild pitch. Seniors Austin Schwarm (Farina, IL/South Central) and Colton Calhoun (Mt. Zion, IL/Mt. Zion) were each hit by a pitch to load the bases before Walsh scored thanks to an error on a ball hit by senior Ryan Cates (Anderson, IN/Yorktown) to get the Bearcats within 3-1.
 
Two batters later and with the bases still loaded, Fisher stepped in and delivered a two-out, two-run double down the left-field line to score Schwarm and Calhoun to knot the contest at 3-3. However, Lewis was able to rally in the bottom of the seventh, capitalizing on two McKendree errors in the frame to grab the walk-off win.
 
Cates, making his final start on the mound for McKendree, was charged with the loss in the opener. In six-plus innings of work, Cates allowed just one earned run on six hits with a season-high seven strikeouts.
 
The Flyers grabbed a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning of game two before McKendree cut into its deficit in the third inning. Calhoun produced a one-out double to left field and reached third on a wild pitch. Two batters later, senior infielder Cody Hall (Harrisburg, IL/Harrisburg) go the Bearcats on the scoreboard with an RBI single to plate Calhoun, bringing McKendree within 3-1.
 
After Lewis added three runs in the seventh inning to extend its advantage to 6-1, McKendree answered with three runs in the top of the eighth to get back within 6-4. Calhoun was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame and moved to third on a single by Cates. Hall then drove in his second run of the contest when he hit into a fielder's choice to bring home Calhoun. Junior catcher Matt DeLaVega (Lincolnwood, IL/Niles West) delivered an RBI single to score Cates before Roberts capped the Bearcats' scoring for the year thanks to a run-scoring single to plate DeLaVega. The Flyers then scored twice in the bottom of the eighth to seal the victory and the four-game weekend sweep of McKendree.
 
Senior right-hander Matt Wasche (Kansas City, MO/Rockhurst) pitched the first five innings for McKendree. Wasche allowed three unearned runs on six hits with two strikeouts in his final outing for the Bearcats.