PALATINE, Ill. – The Harper College baseball team endured a tough start to its 2016 season, but they gave Hawks fans a treat in the first home games of the year on Monday afternoon. After suffering a 10-5 loss to Joliet Junior College in game one, the Hawks played error-free baseball in the second game and got a tremendous pitching performance from Adam Kowalski (Arlington Heights, Ill. /Buffalo Grove) to defeat the Wolves, 2-1, in game two.

In that second game, Kowalski was dominant (1-1) was dominant on the hill. The 6-foot-4 righty pitched the full seven innings, allowing just one run on five hits while striking out 11 Joliet hitters. The Hawks (1-14, 1-9 N4C) also got timely hitting from its middle infielders, Jeremiah Mack (/Westinghouse) and Paul Kramolisch (/Bolingbrook). Mack's RBI double in the second inning plated Christian Poulsen (Schaumburg, Ill. /Schaumburg) to give Harper a 1-0 lead.

Kowalski surrendered a run in the fifth inning on a sac fly from Jake Drada, but his offense picked him up as Kramolisch's RBI single scored Branden Davis (/Rich East) to make it 2-1. Kowalski pitched a 1-2-3 sixth inning and worked out of a tight spot in the seventh. After hitting a batter with one out, Kowalski caught both Jeff Pattison and Davis Purviance looking at third strikes to end the game.

Nick Marconi (0-1) gave up a run in two innings of work and was the losing pitcher.  In the first game, Nick Lindemann (1-0) pitched three scoreless innings for the victory. Making his first start of the year on the mound for Harper, David Dugger (Matteson, Ill. /Rich Central) (0-1) struggled to slow down the Joliet offense. The freshman yielded seven runs (four earned) on seven hits while striking out four in three innings of work. Southpaw reliever Steven Perille (Barrington, Ill. /Barrington) tossed the final four innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits.

Joliet outhit Harper 13-4 in game one, led by Purviance's 3-for-5 performance. The Hawks got good production from Poulsen, who was 1-for-3 with a three-run double that keyed a five-run fifth inning.

Harper will look to carry over the momentum into a doubleheader with conference foe Madison College (12-13, 7-3 N4C) on Tuesday afternoon. First pitch of game one is set for 2 PM on the campus of Harper College.