Now that the regular season has ended, the Madison College baseball team’s pursuit of a seventh-straight appearance at the Division II World Series begins. But the path won’t be easy.
Four teams in Region 4 are currently ranked, led by No. 10 Kankakee Community College. Black Hawk College is ranked 11th, Madison College is ranked 12th and Elgin Community College is ranked 23rd.
The WolfPack takes a five-game winning streak into the NJCAA Region 4 Sectional Tournament, which begins on May 9.
Madison College finished the season 37-9 overall, winning 21 of its last 23 games. Its only losses in that stretch were to Region 4 foe Black Hawk College on April 27.
Offensively, the WolfPack has put up some impressive numbers. The team has outscored its opponents, 336 to 161, and has an overall batting average of .307 compared to .226 for the opposition. Madison College has also hit 28 home runs compared to nine for its opponents.
Ten WolfPack players are hitting over .300. Among those with 70 or more at-bats this season, Marcelino Edison Alonso leads with way with an average of .358, recording 53 hits in 148 at-bats. He has scored 45 runs and driven in 38. His seven home runs ranks second on the team.
He is followed by Charlie Shau at .347, Ryan Santi at .338, Jalen Gellings at .336, Beau Bloxdorf at .330 and Nate Novinska at .328. Novinska leads the team in home runs with eight and in runs batted in with 40.
Among the pitchers, Noah Marschke leads the team in innings pitched at 51-2/3. He has posted a 5-1 record and a 2.44 earned run average with 70 strikeouts. Next up in innings pitched is Quinn Falish at 35 innings. He has posted a 4-0 record and a 1.03 ERA with 19 strikeouts. Axel Donaldson has pitched 29 innings, posting 5-0 record and a 0.93 ERA with 21 strikeouts.
If Madison College wins the sectional tournament, it will advance to the NJCAA Region 4 Tournament where it will play for a berth in the NJCAA Division II World Series.

Madison College 7, McHenry County College 6
Madison College scored five runs in the second inning to take a 7-1 lead, then held on the rest of the way for a 7-6 victory over McHenry County College at home on May 4. Freshman Sam Moses pitched the final three innings, holding McHenry scoreless to record the victory.
Gellings had three hits and scored twice to lead the WolfPack hitters. Tyler Butina had two hits in the game, including a double.

Madison College 3, Harper College 1
A three-run fourth inning was all the offense Madison College would get, but it was enough for a 3-1 victory over visiting Harper College on May 3 in the first game of a doubleheader.
After a double by Howie Rickett gave the WolfPack a 1-0 lead, Gellings had a two-run single with two outs to push the lead to 3-0. Marschke pitched a complete game, allowing one run on four hits while striking out eight batters.

Madison College 3, Harper College 2
After six scoreless innings, Madison College was able to claim a 3-2 victory in the 10th inning of the second game. Two walks and a single loaded the bases and a sacrifice fly by Rickett brought in the winning run.
Three pitchers took the mound for the WolfPack in the game. Quinn allowed two runs on six hits in four innings. Carter Lund went five innings, allowing just one hit.
Landon Dessart earned the win, pitching the final inning and allowing just one baserunner.

Madison College 2, McHenry County College 0
Three pitchers combined for a shutout as Madison College beat McHenry County College, 2-0, on April 29. Donaldson earned the win to improve his record to 5-0. He pitched six innings and allowing just four hits.
Broden Jackson pitched two innings, allowing a hit and two walks, while Nick West earned the save with a 1-2-3 final inning. Novinska, Bloxdorf and Chris Callico each had two hits in the game for the WolfPack.

Madison College 11, Rockford University JV 1
A six-run fifth inning powered Madison College to an 11-1 victory in eight innings over Rockford University JV at home on April 28. Sam Moses hit a home run and four players hit doubles in the game, including Moses, Ryan Santi, Tyler Butina and Trace Kirchberg.
Ben Ketelsen earned the win, his first of the season. He pitched five innings, allowing one run on five hits with four strikeouts.

Black Hawk College 3, Madison College 2
Black Hawk College rallied to a 3-2 victory over Madison College in the first game of a doubleheader on April 27, scoring three runs on two hits an error and a beaned batter. Madison College was held to two runs on six hits, striking out eight times in the game.

Black Hawk College 2, Madison College 0
In the second game of the doubleheader, Black Hawk College posted the only runs in the game in the bottom of the second inning to claim a 2-0 victory over Madison College. Black Hawk had a double, a walk and a triple in the inning.
Madison College threatened to score in the top of the sixth inning, getting the first two runners on base with a single and a walk. But a double play and a strikeout ended the threat.