The UIS and McKendree baseball teams each claimed a win in Friday's pair of seven-inning games in Lebanon, Ill. McKendree took game one 7-4, while UIS bounced back for a 6-4 win in game two. The series — and the regular season — concludes with an 11:00 a.m. first pitch on Saturday.

GAME ONE | McKendree 7, UIS 4

• Ben Benoit struck out eight in five innings but took the loss (3-6) after McKendree plated five runs in the second inning on three singles, aided by a walk, hit-by-pitch, and wild pitch.
• Ivan Dahlberg hit a two-run home run in the third after a Jackson Blemler single to close the gap to 5-2. UIS pulled within two runs again in the sixth, scoring on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single.
• However, a McKendree solo home run in the bottom of the inning after a UIS pitching change made it 7-4, which held as the final. Jacob Goss pitched one inning in relief.
• Dahlberg finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs, and Johnny Wendling added a double.

GAME TWO | UIS 6, McKendree 4

• Mark Decicco earned the win (6-4) after a strong six-inning outing, allowing just one baserunner in the first three frames and working through a bumpy fourth before settling back in.
• UIS scored four runs in the top of the first, highlighted by an RBI single from Mark Kattula, a bases-loaded walk, and a two-run single by Chris Suchoski.
• In the fourth, Suchoski and Jackson Blemler hit back-to-back home runs before Ethan Bowers added a single. McKendree answered with four runs of its own, including a three-run homer, but Decicco responded with two strikeouts and a clean sixth inning.
• Seth Masters closed out the win, allowing one hit in the seventh to record his ninth save of the season — now second-most in UIS single-season history.
• Suchoski went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs.

Up Next
The series finale and regular-season closer is set for 11:00 a.m. Saturday in Lebanon, Ill.