ELMHURST, Ill. - After dropping the first two games of the weekend, Elmhurst stormed back with an explosive offensive performance on Sunday to salvage the series finale, outlasting Carroll 11-10 in a back-and-forth slugfest. The Bluejays' victory ended a six-game skid and improved their record to 8-20 overall and 1-9 in CCIW play, while Carroll fell to 14-14 (5-7 CCIW).

Elmhurst's offense was alive all series, led by Tommy Wichgers' five hits and three RBIs, along with Calvin Keith, who homered, doubled, and scored five runs. Evan Johnson also made his mark with a two-run homer and three RBIs in the finale. Blake Gould chipped in a pair of two-run homers across the series. The Bluejays tallied 22 runs and 31 hits over three games but were haunted by defensive miscues and late bullpen struggles in the first two contests.

The opener began with Carroll jumping out to an 8-0 lead behind big hits from D. Lamberson and J. Appino, who combined for seven RBIs. Elmhurst answered with a flurry in the middle innings, sparked by Wichgers and Konrad, but Carroll tacked on late insurance to secure a 13-7 win. Charlie Smith took the loss after giving up seven runs in four innings.

Game two saw Elmhurst claw back from a 4-0 deficit to tie the game 4-4 after Blake Gould's two-run homer and Rock Smith's RBI double. But Carroll capitalized on defensive errors and a wild pitch in the ninth to plate four runs, pulling away for an 8-4 win. Jonathan Boyles was tagged with the loss in relief.

Sunday's finale was an offensive showcase. Elmhurst raced out to a 7-0 lead by the third inning behind Keith's solo homer, an RBI single by Johnson, and a two-run single from Erik Malott. Carroll stormed back with six runs across the fourth and fifth innings to make it 7-6, but Elmhurst had more firepower in store. Blake Gould crushed his second homer of the series—a two-run shot in the sixth—and Johnson added a two-run blast of his own in the seventh to stretch the lead to 11-6. The Pioneers nearly erased that cushion with a three-run triple in the eighth and an RBI single in the ninth, but Marty Fraga shut the door for his first save of the season. Logan Leach earned the win in relief despite surrendering three runs over 2.1 innings.

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