DEERFIELD, Ill. - University of St. Francis rallied to complete a sweep of its doubleheader at Trinity International University Wednesday afternoon and clinched outright possession of its second Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference baseball title in the past three seasons.

Senior center fielder David Heasley (Crystal Lake Central H.S./Spring Grove, IL) snapped a 5-5 tie with a run-scoring double in the top of the ninth inning to drive home the eventual winning run in the 8-5 nightcap.

USF (34-13, 24-5) won the opening game by a 7-0 score to assure itself of no worse than a share of the league crown. The Saints fell behind 4-0 after two innings in the nightcap before storming back to tie the game at 5-5 with a run in the top of the seventh and then winning the game and the league championship in the ninth.

The Saints scored a run in the top of the first of the opener on an RBI single by Heasley and never looked back. They added one more in the fourth and broke the contest open with four runs in the sixth.

Sophomore starting pitcher Matt Huck (Marian Central Catholic H.S./McHenry, IL) went the distance, allowing just five hits with three strikeouts and no walks and ran his record to 6-0 on the season. Heasley, senior second baseman Steve Witczak (St. Rita H.S./Chicago, IL) and sophomore shortstop David Schwabe (Driscoll Catholic H.S./Wood Dale, IL) all had two hits apiece for USF.

TIU shortstop Phil Sims put the Saints in a 4-0 hole in the nightcap with a solo home run in the first inning and a three-run blast in the second inning.

The Saints got one run back in the third on an RBI ground out by senior third baseman Andy Zurales (Lincoln-Way Central H.S./New Lenox, IL) but the Trojans matched that with a run of their own in the bottom of the fourth.

USF got its comeback in full gear with a three-run fifth that was highlighted by Zurales' two-run double and a sacrifice fly by senior designated hitter Pat Grady (Sandburg H.S./Orland Park, IL).

The Saints finally tied the game and forced extra innings in the seventh when Grady singled to drive home Witczak who started the inning with a base hit and moved to third on a single by Zurales.

Zurales started the winning rally in the ninth with a two-out double. Grady walked and Heasley got the clutch hit with a double down the right-field line that scored Zurales and put the Saints in front 6-5. Freshman first baseman Joe Ruge (Riverside-Brookfield H.S./North Riverside, IL) gave USF some breathing room with a single to left that scored both Grady and Heasley.

Sophomore reliever Corey Schultz (Kankakee H.S./Kankakee, IL) worked the final four innings and allowed just one single. He improved his record to a team-best 9-0 and lowered his earned run average to 1.47.

Zurales went 4-for-5 on the game with a run scored and two RBI. Witczak added a pair of hits and scored three times.

The wins pushed USF's overall record to 34-13 and its conference mark to 24-5. The Saints have won seven straight games, 21 of their last 23 overall and have reeled off a streak of 19 consecutive CCAC wins since losing the front half of a doubleheader to Trinity Christian back on April 6. USF was just 5-5 in the league and 13-11 overall before embarking on the current hot streak.

The Saints conclude their regular season Thursday with a 3 p.m., single nine-inning game against Trinity International at Silver Cross Field. USF is then off until beginning play in the Opening Round of the NAIA National Championship Baseball Tournament on May 18 at a site to be announced by the NAIA next week.