CHICAGO HEIGHTS, Ill. — A frustrating opener gave way to a far sharper finish for Milwaukee Area Technical College baseball on Sunday, as the Stormers shook off a 6–2 loss in Game 1 and punched back with a 7–4 win in the nightcap behind freshman reliever Max Nottingham's four‑inning anchor.

MATC watched a 2–1 lead disappear in the opener but flipped the script immediately in Game 2, jumping on Prairie State for four first‑inning runs and never trailing again to earn a well‑timed road split.

"I thought the boys did a good job battling this weekend," MATC head coach Caleb Bounds said. "Of course you want to leave with more wins, but they did a great job bouncing back after losing Game 1 to Prairie State." 

GAME 1:  Prairie State 6, Stormers 2
MATC held a 2–1 lead through three innings but couldn't maintain its early edge, as Prairie State rallied late and used a three‑run sixth to hand the Stormers a 6–2 loss in Sunday's opener.

Starter Isaiah Head kept MATC in front early, working 5.2 innings and allowing six runs (five earned) on 11 hits and two walks while striking out five. He escaped a bases‑loaded, one‑out jam in the first with an infield fly and a strikeout and limited the Pioneers to a single run through the first three innings.

MATC briefly grabbed control in the third. Austin Arnold opened the inning with a walk, and after an Easton Morehouse single, Jaiden Jung tied the game with an RBI single. Morehouse then stole home to give the Stormers a brief 2–1 lead.

Prairie State answered in the fourth, loading the bases on an error, a single and a bunt fielder's choice before tying the game on an RBI walk and taking a 3–2 lead on a groundout.

The decisive swing came in the sixth, when the Pioneers strung together three runs on four hits, including a pair of RBI triples, to extend the margin to 6–2. Connor Ziman recorded the final out of the inning with a clean 0.1‑inning appearance.

MATC threatened in the seventh after Gavin Garnica and Blake Bugher opened the inning with singles, but Prairie State retired the next three hitters to close out the win.

Jung went 2‑for‑3 with two singles and an RBI to lead the Stormers' offense. Morehouse added a single and scored once, while Garnica and Bugher each recorded a hit. Brady Johnson singled and scored, and Arnold reached once on a walk.

GAME 2:  Stormers 7, Prairie State 4
MATC flipped the script in the nightcap, jumping out to a four‑run lead in the first inning and riding a strong relief outing from Max Nottingham to close out a 7–4 win and secure the Sunday split.

Starter Bralen Mitcham gave the Stormers three competitive innings, allowing two earned runs on seven hits with no walks. Nottingham took over from there and earned the win, working four innings and allowing two earned runs on two hits while striking out four despite three walks.

MATC seized control immediately in the top of the first, taking advantage of five free passes — two walks and three hit batters — to build a 4–0 lead. Hayden Fellows delivered the big swing of the inning with a two‑run double, Blake Bugher forced in a run with an HBP, and Easton Stewart added a sacrifice fly to cap the early surge.

Prairie State threatened repeatedly in the early innings but came up empty, stranding a two‑out triple in the first, a two‑out double in the second and back‑to‑back leadoff singles in the third.

MATC extended its lead in the fourth when Brady Johnson opened the inning with a triple and scored on Austin Arnold's sacrifice fly. Moments later, Carson Sieler tripled and came home on an error to make it 6–0.

Prairie State finally broke through in the bottom half with three straight hits — a single, a double and an RBI double — trimming the deficit to 6–2.

The Stormers added insurance in the seventh when Tyler Lee doubled and scored on Bugher's RBI single, pushing the lead to 7–2. Prairie State plated two runs in the bottom of the inning on a double aided by a walk and a hit batter, but Nottingham closed the door to preserve the win.

Fellows went 2‑for‑4 with two RBIs and a run scored to lead the Stormers. Johnson added a triple and scored once, while Sieler contributed a triple, a walk and two runs. Bugher reached three times on two walks and a single and drove in two. Lee finished with a double, two hit‑by‑pitches and two runs scored.

UP NEXT
MATC (20–31) will travel to College of Lake County for a nine‑inning contest at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.