Box Score The Aurora University baseball team took to the road again, this time to North Park University on Friday evening for a non-conference contest. AU dropped the game 9-6 to the Vikings.

AU got on the board first in the top of the first inning with Tanner Oymaian scoring on a ground out by Zach Flores. But the lead did not last long as North Park tied the game in the bottom of the inning courtesy of a solo home run of Spartan starting pitcher Josh Kwasny.

The Spartans accounted for the next two runs of the game, one in the second inning with Michael Cherven driving in Jared Swain who had doubled to lead off the inning. The two combined efforts again in the fourth inning with Swain doubling again and scoring on a Cherven single for a 3-1 AU lead.

North Park scored three runs in the bottom of the fourth off Kwasny to take a 4-3 lead and then added three more runs in the fifth to take a commanding 7-3 lead. In the fifth, AU's Jared Steck came in relief of Kwasny.

In the top of the sixth, AU chipped away at the Viking lead with Flores reaching on a lead-off triple and scoring on a single from Dillon Popovich.

The Vikings expanded their lead in the seventh with two runs off Steck for a 9-4 lead.

AU did score twice in the ninth inning to put a scare into the Vikings but the rally was to little to late.

The Spartans loss moves them to 4-11 overall on the season. Next action for the Spartan baseball team comes on Saturday, March 29 when they host Marian University. Game time for game one of the doubleheader is set for 12:00 p.m. at Solfisburg Park in Aurora, Ill.