After a two-day weather delay the baseball team finally got to play Platteville and it was well worth the wait. The Warhawks routed the Pioneers in game one 15-2 and came from behind to win 7-6 in game two.  This was the conference opener for both teams.  UW-Whitewater improves to 14-1 overall and 2-0 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Platteville falls to 10-4 overall and 0-2 in the WIAC.

Game one box score
Game two box score

 

In game one, UW-W scored one in the top of the first inning to take a 1-0 lead and then Riley Tincher (Oregon/Oregon) went to work on the mound holding the Pioneers scoreless and hitless until the bottom of the sixth.

 

Meanwhile the Warhawks padded their lead by scoring three in the fourth, six in the fifth, and four in the sixth. During that stretch UW-W went 12-for-20 at the plate including a 2-for-3 performance by Ben Kuhlmann (Minneapolis, MN/Southwest) that included 2 RBIs, and a 3-for-3 showing by Rob Coe (Appleton/North) highlighted with 3 RBI. After five and a half the 'Hawks found themselves with a 14-0 lead.

 

Platteville manufactured two hits in the bottom of the sixth to break up the no-hitter. They also got on the scoreboard with one run to erase the shutout. UW-W got that run back in the top of the seventh after Jordan Stine (Merrill/Merrill ) singled and scored after a passed ball, a balk, and an error.

 

Another run by each team in the seventh rounded out the scoring for the game as it ended after seven innings due to the ten-run differential rule.

 

Tincher earned the victory and improved to 6-0 after pitching five and two-thirds while giving up two hits and one run while striking out five.

Game two saw the Warhawks jump out to a 4-0 lead after the third inning.  UW-W scored two runs on one hit in each the second and third innings.

Platteville inched closer by knocking in three runs in the bottom of the fourth and then gained the lead by scoring two in the bottom of the fifth.  The Pioneers extended their lead to 6-4 in the bottom of the sixth and maintained that margin until the top of the ninth.

UW-W made things happen in their half of the last frame and it all started with back-to-back-to-back singles by Travis Wessels (Tomah/Tomah), Jordan Stine (Merrill/Merrill ), and Daniel Putnam (Ashland /Ashland).  On the Putnam single, Wessels scored to bring the Warhawks within one.  A wild pitch, a passed ball, a walk, and another wild pitch pushed two more runs in and gave the Warhawks the lead.

Ben Versnik (West Allis/Hale) came in to pitch in the bottom of the ninth for UW-W and got the first two batters to groundout.  The next batter singled and the following batter reached on an error which put runners at the corners.  Versnik shut the door on a Platteville comeback by fanning the final batter of the inning and game.

Kyle Lee (Beaver Dam/Beaver Dam) entered the game in the fifth inning and earned the win.  Combined, the Warhawk pitchers struckout eight batters in the game.

The Warhawks will return to the diamond on Saturday to face-off against UW-Stout in a doubleheader beginning at noon at Prucha Field in Whitewater.  The Warhawks will also play Stout on Sunday in another doubleheader beginning at noon.

For additional information, John Vodenlich