Baseball Vikings Close Season with Loss to Aurora

AURORA, IL (May 7, 2003) - The North Park University (NPU) baseball team finished its 2003 season 3-34, losing a 6-1 nonleague decision to Aurora University Tuesday afternoon.

North Park was the home team, even though the game was played at Aurora University - a reality that occurred all season because North Park's baseball field is being readied for an athletic field renovation. Playing all of its games away from campus didn't help any, but the Vikings' defensive woes may have been a more formidable problem.

On Tuesday, Aurora scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning, taking advantage of three NPU errors. Although NPU's Dion Rubino was 3-for-5 and Nick Zayas, Justin Lezon and Vince Fanelli had two hits each, the team left 13 runners on base. It added up to another hard-luck loss for junior pitcher Jeff Hanson, who is from Hillside Covenant Church in Walnut Creek, California.

Hanson's loss Tuesday was his second in less than a week. On Friday afternoon at Wheaton College, the right-hander threw nine innings and gave up just two earned runs only to have Wheaton score in the 10th to win the opener of a three-game College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) series.

A three-year starting pitcher, Hanson finished the season fifth on NPU's career pitching list for innings pitched (232) and fourth in strikeouts (173). The school record for innings is 262, set by Pete Zajac in 1987. Zajac's 197 strikeouts is also first on NPU's all-time list. Hanson will get a chance to hone his talents this summer in Alaska, playing for a team sponsored by Athletes in Action.

Another NPU pitcher, senior Ben Macaux, moved into fourth on North Park's all-time list in games pitched with 46. Hanson is tied for ninth with 39 appearances.

North Park ended its CCIW season by splitting a Saturday double header with Wheaton at Alexian Field in Schaumburg. The Vikings scored twice in the 11th inning on a two-run single by Fanelli to help Alexis Hernandez (3-4) pick up the victory. Fanelli and four others produced two hits apiece in the contest. In the second game, Wheaton beat North Park 13-1 despite two hits by Lezon.

Although the team struggled offensively all season, a bright spot was senior center fielder Dion Rubino who hit .307 with four homers and 39 hits while stealing eight bases. The four-year letterman hit .280 for his career with 120 hits, 89 runs, 50 runs batted in and 25 steals.

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