The Dominican University baseball team suffered a 3-2 setback to start the 2016 season to the Millikin Big Blue at Fontbonne University's Shaw Park on Saturday afternoon.  The Stars will return tomorrow to face the host Griffins in a doubleheader starting at noon.
 
"While I'm not happy with the outcome, I'm very happy with the way we played today," commented Dominican's fifth-year head coach Steve Hardman. "We went down early and very easily could have folded but we did not do that and held them from there, giving us a chance."
 
The Big Blue managed to get on the board right out the gate and then held the Stars off late.  Millikin scored three off of four hits, including two extra-base hits, in the bottom of the first inning of Dominican University sophomore right-hander Colin Janison (Las Vegas, Nev.).  Janison then settled down, allowing just three hits the rest of the way and retiring 12 straight at one point and striking out nine in his second complete game at the collegiate level.
 
"We had an outstanding outing from Janison," Hardman.  "He settled down after the first when we shifted gears on our game plan."
 
In the top of the second, Mike Piotrowski (Arlington Heights, Ill.) drew a leadoff walk.  After a fielder's choice pushed Piotrowski to second, Lucas McKinney (Arvada, Colo.) ripped a RBI double down the left field line.  One out later, KJ Wilk (Shelby Township, Mich.) picked up his first collegiate hit, lacing a triple to center to score McKinney and pull the Stars within a run, 3-2.
 
Dominican put a runner in scoring position with less than two outs in the third and fifth innings, but could not push across the tying run.
 
The Stars then stranded the tying a go-ahead runs at second and third in the top of the ninth when Nathaniel Natividad (Oak Lawn, Ill.) started the inning by reaching on a hit-by-pitch.  McKinney followed with a single through the left side of the infield before Brian Costello (Norridge, Ill.) laid down a sacrifice to put both runners in scoring position with just one out but Wilk grounded out before Quinlan Milne Rojek (Minneapolis, Minn.) flew out to left to end the game.
 
The Stars stranded eight runners for the game while Millikin left four on base.
 
"We had a couple of opportunities to push across the tying and go-ahead runs but we could not execute," said Hardman.  "With that said, I'm happy with the effort and the way we battled."
 
Salay finished 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of singles while McKinney picked up three hits, going 3-for-4 with a RBI double.
 
For the Big Blue, Max Paolicchi tossed eight innings to pick up the win before Ben Peters came in to pick up the save.  Paolicchi struck out nine while walking just one and scattered seven hits over eight innings.