Heartland baseball was back in action for five games this past week, as the Hawks opened with a 16-6 victory over Triton College on Tuesday before taking three of four games from rival and NJCAA DII No. 20-ranked Parkland College on Friday and Saturday. The Hawks improved to 14-6 on the season and 7-1 in conference play.
 
Game 1 vs. Triton
The Hawks opened the week with a 16-6 rout of Triton College on Tuesday at The Corn Crib behind six runs in the opening frame. After Heartland loaded the bases to begin the bottom of the first, Kyle Jannenga laced a grand slam to left field to five the Hawks a 4-0 lead. TJ Williams added a two-run double later in the inning to extend the advantage to 6-0.
 
A long ball by Patrick Gardner in the second drove-in three more runs and made it 9-0 in favor of Heartland. The Trojans would get on the board with two tallies in the third, but a bases loaded walk by Aidan McNamee pushed the Hawks to a 10-2 lead in the bottom of the frame.
 
Triton added two runs in the fourth, but the Hawks again had an answer with two runs of their own as Brady Davidson and Corey Boyette both delivered RBI singles to make it 12-4. A two-run bomb by the Trojans in the fifth made it interesting at 12-6, but an error by the Trojans on a Williams ground ball scored two more runs for Heartland in the bottom of the fifth. Boyette scored two more tallies for the Hawks moments later with an RBI single to make it 16-6.
 
Williams, Boyette, Jannenga, Gardner and Max Hennemann each had a pair of hits for the Hawks in the win. Dylan Warda picked-up the win for the Hawks in 3.2 innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on four hits with six walks and four strikeouts.
 
Game 2 @ Parkland
Heartland traveled to nearby Champaign to battle Parkland College for a pair of games on Friday. In a back-and-forth contest in the opening game of the series, the Hawks held-on for a 12-11 win over the Cobras.
 
The Hawks were in an early hole to begin the game, as Parkland scored five runs in the first and added one more in the second to take a 6-0 advantage. Gardner gave the Hawks some life in the third with a grand slam to narrow the deficit to 6-4.
 
 
A solo shot by Parkland's Scott Newman in the third made it 7-4 in favor of the Cobras. Gardner would bring the deficit back to two with an RBI-double in the fifth before a Ryan Snell solo home run gave the Cobras an 8-5 advantage through five frames.
 
The Hawks began to gain momentum in the seventh, eventually scoring six runs to suddenly jump in front at 11-8. Atkinson walked in a run before Hennemann registered an RBI with a fielder's choice. Davidson knocked an RBI single moments later to tie the game at 8-8, and Boyette added a three-run double to give the Hawks the lead.
 
Atkinson added a sacrifice fly to make it 12-8 in the eighth. A Newman three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth pulled the Cobras back to within one at 12-11, but Michael Vitellaro entered to record the final out and the Hawks held on. Davidson and Gardner each had three hits to lead the Heartland offense.
 
Game 3 @ Parkland
The second game of the day was not as favorable for the Hawks in a 13-10 defeat at the hands of the Cobras. Singles by Atkinson and Griffitts drove-in the first runs of the game for Heartland to make it 3-0. The Cobras scored twice in the bottom of the frame as the Hawks led 3-2 after the first.
 
Griffitts supplied another RBI single in the third to extend the lead to 4-2 before the Cobras struck back with six runs in the bottom of the third to give the home team an 8-4 advantage. Parkland would score twice more in the fourth to extend the lead to 10-4.
 
Base hits by Hennemann and Williams scored two runs for the Hawks in the fifth, but Will Flanigan responded with a two-run homer to right field in the bottom of the frame to make it 12-6. After a run by each team in the sixth brought the score to 13-7, the contest was suspended due to darkness and resumed at Heartland in the top of the seventh on Saturday.
 
RBI's by Davidson, Boyette and McNamee pulled the Hawks to within three at 13-10 the following day, but the Cobras closed the game out moments later to take the win.
 
Game 4 vs. Parkland
In game four, offensive was at a minimum for both teams in a pitching battle between Parkland's Jaxon Christensen and Heartland's Jacob O'Day until the sixth frame. The Cobras broke the scoreless tie with doubles by Flanigan and Josh Outlaw to take a 3-0 lead.
 
The Hawks were not out yet, however, as they erupted for 10 tallies in the bottom of the frame to jump out in front at 10-3. Jannenga walked to open the inning followed by an Atkinson single. Hennemann doubled home Jannenga before Williams reached on a fielder's choice and Davidson drove-in a run with a groundout to tie the game at 3-3. After the Cobras recorded two outs, Gardner connected on a bases-loaded single that was misplayed by Newman in center field to allow four runs to score for the Hawks.
 
Hennemann, Williams and Davidson each supplied run-scoring hits moments later to give the Hawks a 10-3 lead, which held as the final score. O'Day finished six frames and yielded three runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts. Hennemann paced the Heartland offense, going 4-4 with two runs and three RBI's.
 
Game 5 vs. Parkland
The series finale saw the Hawks continue their offensive production in an 11-8 victory. A three-run long ball by Cale Steinbaugh in the second gave Heartland a 3-0 lead. After a Snell solo shot in the third for the Cobras, the Hawks rallied for seven runs in the bottom of the third to extend the lead to 10-1.
 
Adam Price and Steinbaugh each drove-in a run before Hennemann connected for a three-run home run to make it 8-1. Boyette and McNamee each delivered RBI hits later in the frame.
 
The Cobras would slowly creep back into the contest with two runs in the fourth, two in the sixth, one in the seventh and one more in the ninth, but Jimmy Amptmann secured the win on the mound for the Hawks. Davidson, Boyette, McNamee, Price and Steinbaugh each finished with two hits for the Hawks.
 
Heartland returns to action at 3 pm Tuesday for a face-off with Wabash Valley at The Corn Crib.