Anthony Gagliardi has bounced around a little bit the past two years after being named an all-state pitcher at Cedar Rapids Prairie in 2011.

He enrolled at Southeastern Community College in West Burlington after graduating from Prairie, but left after one semester and pitched at Indian Hills Community College in 2012.

He returned to Cedar Rapids this year and is pitching at Kirkwood Community College, his third junior college in two years of touring the state.

"It has been a roller-coaster," he affirmed Monday.

Gagliardi was the starting pitcher and tossed three innings Monday as the Eagles topped Southwestern, 7-4, in the first game of an ICCAC doubleheader at the Kirkwood field.

Kirkwood (30-14, 13-11) rallied for a 9-5 victory in the second game.

Gagliardi, a 6-foot-4 righthander, got a no-decision in his final tuneup for the NJCAA Division II Region XI tournament that begins Thursday in Waterloo.

He ranks No.3 in the pitching rotation and thinks he would toss the third game for Kirkwood in the double-elimination tournament if the Eagles get that far.

Gagliardi would love to get a chance to pitch in the tournament.

"It would be awesome. It's exciting," he said. "We've got a good team, a really good team."

Gagliardi has battled injuries during his junior college career. He had a groin problem last year at Indian Hills and compiled a 2-4 record in 12 games, with 48 strikeouts in 45 innings.

He was Kirkwood's starting pitcher in the opening game of the season at the Metrodome in Minneapoils this February, but he's battled back spasms much of the season and has appeared in only six games.

"I started getting back at it three weeks or a month ago," he said. "My back feels a lot better now."

Gagliardi has a 1-3 record and 5.62 ERA for Kirkwood with 23 strikeouts in 19.2 innings. He's walked 15 batters and control was an issue again Monday when he walked four batters and hit another. He allowed two earned runs and left the game with the score tied, 2-2.

Gagliardi said he's working on his control. He threw some good pitches and struck out three batters, but was inconsistent.

"I think that has a lot to do with my rhythm, not being on the mound all year and basically not being in top form," he said. "But I'm back and I'm feeling good."

Kirkwood scored four runs in the sixth inning of the opener to erase a 4-3 deficit and grab the victory. Shane Kemp tied the game, 4-4, with a clutch two-out double. Two more runs scored when the Southwestern center fielder misplayed a high fly ball in the sun by Eric Schenck-Joblinske to make it 6-4.

The Eagles got an insurance run on an RBI single by Jairo Gonzalez, who was the NJCAA Division II National Player of the Week last week for his hot hitting.

Alexis Bauzo (4-1) got the victory in relief. Jake Triulzi pitched the seventh inning for his fourth save.

Kirkwood trailed 5-2 after five innings in the nightcap, but the Eagles exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the sixth inning for the sweep.

Gonzalez drove in three runs for Kirkwood in the nightcap.

GAME 1

SOUTHWESTERN (4): Pena, 2b, 3 0 1 1, Moore, cf, 2 0 0 0, Lieser, dh, 2 2 2 0, Coates, 3b, 4 1 1 0, Daniels, ss, 2 1 0 0, Hotusing, c, 4 0 1 1, Feuerbach, lf, 3 0 1 0, Ocheltree, 1b, 3 0 1 0, Urban, rf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 26 4 7 2.

KIRKWOOD (7): Schneck-Jolinske, lf, 3 2 0 0, Rodriguez, 3b, 2 1 1 1, Gonzalez, c, 3 0 1 1, Jones, 1b, 4 0 1 0, Colon, ss, 2 1 0 1, Feliz, cf, 2 1 1 0, Croes, dh, 3 0 0 0, Adams, 2b, 2 1 0 0, Kemp, rf, 3 1 1 1. Totals 24 7 5 4.

Southwestern      011 020 0 - 4 7 3
Kirkwood              101 104 x - 7 5 3

Lieser, Williams (6) and Hotusing. Gagliardi, Bauzo (4), Triulzi (7) and Gonzalez. W - Bauzo. L - Williams. 2b - Coates, Kemp. SB - Daniels, Feliz.

GAME 2

SOUTHWESTERN (5): Pena, 2b, 3 1 1 1, Gerch, c, 1 0 1 1, Marquez, pr, 0 0 0 0, Pruitt, c, 2 0 1 0, Lieser, 1b, 4 0 1 0, Coates, 3b, 3 1 1 0, Daniels, ss, 2 2 1 0, Hofusing, dh, 4 1 0 0, Feuerbach, lf, 4 0 1 0,  Urban, rf, 3 0 1 2, Cendrowski, cf, 3 0 0 0. Totals 29 5 8 4.

KIRKWOOD (9): Schenck-Joblinske, lf, 3 2 1 1, Rodriguez, 2b, 3 1 0 1, Gonzalez, 3b, 4 1 2 3, Jones, dh, 3 1 2 1, Colon, ss, 4 0 2 2, Feliz, cf, 3 2 0 0, Bakeris, 1b, 3 1 1 0, Merced, c, 2 0 1 0, Hagarty, pr, 0 1 0 0, Hast, c, 0 0 0 0, Czarneski, rf, 2 0 0 1, Croes, ph/rf, 1 0 0 0. Totals 28 9 9 9.

Southwestern    001 220 0 - 5 8 3
Kirkwood            100 107 x - 9 9 2

Williams, McVey (6) and Gerch, Pruitt. Rosario, Amador (4), Adams (4), Kemp (6), Simmons (7) and Merced, Hast. W - Kemp. L - McVey. 2B - Urban, Colon. SB - Jones, Feliz 2, Merced.