CHARLESTON, Ill. (Interstat) — In a tense, back-and-forth midweek clash defined by pitching changes and missed opportunities, the Northern Illinois Huskies edged the Eastern Illinois Panthers 5-4 in 10 innings Tuesday afternoon at Coaches Stadium at Monier Field.

The game’s most critical sequence unfolded in the top of the 10th. With the score deadlocked, Northern Illinois’ Charlie Parcell led off with a single. Cole Smith then drove a double to right field, scoring Parcell. Smith aggressively took third base on a fielding error by the right fielder, providing the Huskies with the decisive run. Eastern Illinois reliever James Geshel, who entered in the ninth, stranded two runners to keep the deficit at one, but the damage was done.

The Huskies’ bullpen, tasked with protecting that slim lead in the bottom of the 10th, navigated trouble. After Gavin Micklinghoff issued a leadoff walk to Jake Ferguson, who advanced to second on a wild pitch, and then walked Tyler Castro, the Panthers had the tying and winning runs on base with no outs. Micklinghoff induced a flyout from Brett Stanley and a popout from Chris Worcester. Nick Bassi, who recorded the final two outs of the eighth, re-entered to face James Love and sealed the victory with a game-ending flyout to center field.

Northern Illinois improved to 14-7 overall, while Eastern Illinois fell to 13-9.

The victory was anchored by a stellar start from Mason Orton, who rebounded emphatically from a difficult outing the previous week. The Huskies’ right-hander silenced the Panthers over four innings, allowing no hits and one unearned run. He walked two, struck out four and was instrumental in setting the early tone. His performance stood in stark contrast to his last appearance on March 15 against Toledo, where he surrendered five earned runs without recording a hit in just 1 2/3 innings.

Northern Illinois built its initial lead with small ball in the third inning. Connor Mendell doubled and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Cole Smith. The Huskies extended their advantage to 3-1 in the sixth when Gavin Baldwin launched a two-run homer to right field, scoring Wyatt Wawro.

Eastern Illinois, held to just four hits all evening, mounted its comeback in the seventh inning without the benefit of a base hit until the final batter of the frame. A single, two walks and a hit batter loaded the bases. A groundout and a strikeout left the Panthers on the brink of squandering the chance, but pinch-hitter Joey Hagen delivered a two-out RBI single. Reliever John Lyman then issued a bases-loaded walk to Eli Hill, and a wild pitch allowed two more runs to score, tying the game at 4.

The Huskies’ bullpen combination of Josh Loren (2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K), Cooper Cohn, John Lyman and Nick Bassi (1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K) provided 4 2/3 innings of hitless relief after Orton’s departure, crucial in containing the Panthers’ rally and securing the extra-inning win.

Dalton Boruff started for Eastern Illinois, allowing one earned run on four hits over 3 1/3 innings. James Geshel was a bright spot in relief, striking out five over two innings but was tagged with the loss after the unearned run in the 10th.

Northern Illinois out-hit Eastern Illinois 11-4. The Huskies next host Bowling Green for a three-game series starting Friday. Eastern Illinois opens a home series against Morehead State on Friday. The intrastate rivals are scheduled to meet again on April 7 in DeKalb.