(UW-WHITEWATER COMMUNICATIONS) – After falling to Bethany Lutheran in the NCAA Regional Tournament, the Warhawks defeated Macalester College in a dramatic fashion, with Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) hitting the solo walk-off home run to send the Warhawks into the Regional Final for a rematch against the Vikings.
In game one on the day for the Warhawks, it was a back-and-forth affair between the Vikings & UW-Whitewater. BLC took an early lead after a solo home run in the second, followed by an RBI doubles in the third inning. Evan Olson (Kimberly, Wis./Kimberly) was able to knot it up at 2-2 with a 2 RBI single.
Bethany Lutheran then used a 30-run fifth inning to retake the lead at 5-2. But Jackson Spring (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) had the sacrifice fly in the fifth to cut it away. An inning later, Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) hit a 2 RBI double to tie the score. The score didn’t stay knotted for long with a solo home run for the team to get the go-ahead in the 7th.
Leyten Bowers (Mineral Point, Wis./Mineral Point) came through & put the Warhawks up in the 8th, hitting a 2 RBI single. In the 9th inning, the Vikings tacked on two runs, putting pressure on the Warhawk offense. The Warhawks were unable to walk it off in the first game of the day, falling to Bethany Lutheran, 8-7.
In the decisive next game, it was win or go home for the Warhawks & Scots out of Macalester. Macalester was able to jump out to an early lead with a three-run third inning.
Bowers was able to get the Warhawks on the board after trading places with Evan Olson (Kimberly, Wis./Kimberly) after back-to-back doubles. But another crooked number in the 4th helped the Scots reestablish a four-run lead.
The Warhawks loaded up the bases in the fourth, grabbing a run on an Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) single, then another run from a walk drawn by Bowers. Bowers RBI walk put the Warhawks back within two.
Macalester was able to retake the four-run lead in the 6th. But a huge bottom of the frame helped the Warhawks take a lead heading into the final 3 innings.
UW-Whitewater loaded the bases up in the 6th, with Jackson Spring (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) being hit by a pitch to bring in a run. Down by three, it was Keli Grennier (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls) with the blast out to left center for the grand slam, his third of the NCAA Tournament. Grennier put the Warhawks up by one run, their first of the game.
Macalester was able to score a run in the 8th to tie it back up, but Franklin Kirchner (Elk Grove Village, Ill./Conant) closed the door on the mound, not allowing any go-ahead runs from the Scots.
Kirchner struck out the side in the 9th, bringing his K total to 8 in 3.2 innings of work.
With a tie game in the 9th, the Warhawks had three more outs to end the game in regulation. Landen Seymour (Rockton, Ill./Honongah) drew a lead-off walk, but pinch runner Maddux Hibbard (Rockton, Ill./Hononegah) was caught in a double-play to clear the bases. With two-outs, it was up to the catcher to decide the outcome. Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North), who began the first game of the NCAA Tournament against Macalester with a lead-off home run, decided to end it against the Scots with a solo shot to left field.
Holland’s homer was the decisive run, sending the Warhawks past the Scots and setting up the rematch against Bethany Lutheran.
UW-Whitewater will face the Vikings tomorrow, with the first pitch coming at 11 am. If the Warhawks win the first game, the “if necessary” game will begin 45 minutes following the game.
UW-La Crosse eliminated
Decatur, Ill. – The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse baseball team saw their season come to an end as they fell 7-6 to Wartburg College (Iowa) in an elimination game of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Regionals.
THE BASICS
- Result: Wartburg College (Iowa) 7, UW-La Crosse 6
- Location: Workman Baseball Field, Decatur, Ill. (hosted by Millikin University)
- Records: UW-La Crosse 33-14, Wartburg College 28-16
- NCAA Millikin Regional: UW-La Crosse is the #3 seed in the regional while Wartburg College is the #4 seed.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Eagles took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning as Chris Calico walked and stole second base. Then with two outs, Brady Burrill singled to left center field which brough Calico in to score for the Eagles.
- Wartburg would take a 3-1 lead in the top half of the third inning as Liam Bender led off with a single and scored on Griffin Troha’s triple. Troha then scored on Andrew Robinson’s single while Tanner Jackson drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
- In the bottom of the fourth inning, Calvin Hargrove was hit by a pitch and Calico recorded his second walk in as many at bats. Charley Rowan then executed a sacrifice bunt to move Hargrove and Calico up a base. Then with two outs, Hargrove and Calico both scored on back-to-back wild pitches to tie the game at 3-3. Brady Burrill would then walk and score on Emiliano Ramos’ double to left center to give UWL a 4-3 lead.
- UWL would add a run (5-3) in the sixth inning on Calico’s sacrifice fly which scored Keegan Fleischman who had walked to start the inning.
- The Knights would get Jackson’s second sacrifice fly of the night in the seventh inning to make it 5-4. They would then take a 6-5 lead in the top of the eighth inning on Robinson’s two run double.
- Wartburg would add a run in the ninth inning to take a 7-5 lead on Charlie Krueger’s single that Andrew Gallegos who had led of the inning with a triple.
- Andrew Palm would cut Wartburg’s lead to 7-6 with his pinch hit lead off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning. But that would be all of the offense for the Eagles in the ninth as the next three batters were retired.
FROM THE BOX SCORE
- Offensively, UWL finished with six runs on five hits and seven walks.
- Calico finished 1-for-3 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base to lead the Eagles offensively. His stolen base was his 29th of the season which ties the schools single season record.
- Austin Olla (3-3) suffered the loss for UWL as came on in relief to pitch 2.0 innings, allowing four runs on five hits and three walks.
- Chayce Osterhaus got the start for the Eagles as he went 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and four walks while striking out four.
- The Knights finished with seven runs on nine hits and seven walks.
- Troha finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored while Robinson was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored for the Knights.
- Zach Byrne (2-1) came on in relief to earn the win as he allowed two runs on two hits and one walk in 3.1 innings.
- Cael Funk (S, 2) picked up the save as he came on in the ninth and retired the three batters he faced.
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