CRESTWOOD, Ill. – The Roosevelt baseball team celebrated its senior class, including three Lakers who have been a critical part of the program since the team's return to play in 2011, as part of Senior Day Sunday, but the RU 9 couldn't send its graduating stalwarts home on a victorious note as visiting Cardinal Stritch escaped with a 3-0 win at Standard Bank Stadium.
Dylan Grabowski, who recorded the first hit in modern Roosevelt history with an RBI double four seasons ago and went on to become Roosevelt's all-time hits leader, singled twice on Sunday for the Lakers (13-27, 7-18 CCAC).
Grabowski was one of six Lakers honored in a special Senior Day pregame ceremony, as he joined third baseman Brandon Richman, injured pitcher T.J. Davis, reliever Liam Pegg, starting pitcher Alex Van Ness and centerfielder Nathan Greene and their respective families with head coach Steve Marchi on the field for recognition of the six seniors' bevy of contributions.
Davis, Richman and Grabowski were applauded as the trio of Lakers who have been aboard since day one. They comprise the first four-year class for the Roosevelt baseball team since the program was revived and running in the fall of 2010.
The Wolves (14-23, 8-17 CCAC) mustered just four hits against Laker hurlers, but the guests took advantage of early opportunities.
Leadoff man Chris Bass reached on a single in the top of the first and proceeded to steal second and third. He eventually came home on a groundball double play that erased two but put Stritch on the board.
In the third it was the free pass that haunted Van Ness and the Lakers, as four walks and a single produced a pair of runs and chased Roosevelt's senior starter. Pegg came on in relief to minimize the damage with a strikeout and a flyout.
Grabowski accounted for both of the Lakers' hits until the top of the eighth, when Richman laced a one-out single to left, reaching first and departing the game for pinch runner Michael Lally while receiving an ovation as one of the original Lakers in one of his final games.
Lally moved to second after Ismael De La Cruz singled to right for back-to-back Roosevelt singles, creating the greatest threat of the day against Stritch starter Kevin Murphy. But a fielder's choice on Alex Neufeld's grounder made for a forceout at second, and Greene's groundout to third ended the Lakers' pressure.
Despite matching the Wolves in hits, Roosevelt had trouble creating much offense against Murphy, who issued just one walk in a complete-game effort. Murphy escaped a two-out walk to Mike Czarnik in the ninth by inducing a game-ending flyout off the bat of Danny Haze.
All of the seniors who played on Sunday were removed from the game before the end of the top of the ninth by Marchi in a classy move to get each Laker a deserved standing ovation from the Standard Bank Stadium crowd.
Pegg fanned four in five innings of scoreless, two-hit work out of the pen. Mike Marrera retired a pair of hitters in the ninth to continue his solid rookie campaign.
Roosevelt caps the regular season this Tuesday, April 29 against Olivet Nazarene in a doubleheader at Standard Bank Stadium beginning at 3:30 p.m.
