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INDIANAPOLIS - The curse of the odd-numbered year caught up with the Northern Kentucky University baseball program again Monday, and the 2007 result is especially painful for the Norse. That’s because NKU will miss out on a trip to the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament and a chance to defend its league championship. Indianapolis made sure of that Monday afternoon by sweeping a doubleheader from NKU. The Greyhounds took a 2-1 decision in the opener on a walk-off, inside-the-park home run in the bottom of the seventh inning, and they completed the sweep by rallying from a 3-0 deficit in the nightcap to storm past the Norse, 12-8. The two losses eliminated NKU (27-26 overall, 22-16 GLVC) from postseason contention for the first time since 2003. Indianapolis, meanwhile, played itself into the GLVC Tournament by virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker with NKU. In even-numbered years (2002, ’04 and ’06), NKU has won GLVC titles and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament. But in odd-numbered years, (’03, ’05 and ’07) the Norse have been unable to repeat their championships. Twice they even failed to make the GLVC Tournament in order to defend their crown, and in 2001 NKU did not qualify for the NCAA Division II Tournament. NKU appeared to be on the verge of clinching a spot in the GLVC Tournament during the opener behind the strong pitching of right-hander Nathan Jones. The junior from Pendleton County High School took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and NKU held a 1-0 lead. Jake Tranchant, however, broke up both the no-hitter and shutout by hammering a Jones delivery over the left-center field fence to even the score at 1-all. It remained that way until the bottom of the seventh, when pinch-hitter Cliff Eiland sent a drive over Jim Volpe’s head that went all the way to the wall. Eiland circled the bases and survived a collision at the plate with NKU catcher Larry Pempek for an inside-the-park home run and a 2-1 Indianapolis victory. NKU bounced back in the second game for a quick 1-0 lead on Jon Back’s homer to begin the contest. The Norse added two more runs to take a 3-0 advantage after a half inning. Indianapolis rallied, however, and tied the game at 3-all in the third inning. The Greyhounds took the lead for good in the fourth by plating three runs, and they eventually built a 12-5 cushion before setting for a 12-8 victory. Tranchant haunted NKU again with a three-run homer and a total of five RBI. Evan McDole and Kevin Dusold each drove in two runs for NKU, while Back went 3-for-5.
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