Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 UW-Eau Claire defeated UW-Whitewater in a pair of one-run games, 2-1 and 5-4, Sunday to capture the WIAC championship at Gehlein Field in Eau Claire on the final day of the regular season.  The teams entered play Sunday with identical marks in league play at 12-2.  Eau Claire, 30-10, will be the top seed and host for the WIAC Tournament which begins Friday, and Whitewater, 29-9, will be the second seed. 

GAME ONE
Whitewater had runners on first and second with no one out in the top of the first, but the Blugolds turned a double play and got out of the inning.  The Warhawks also put a runner on second with two outs in the third, but could not break the scoreless duel.

In the bottom of the third Eau Claire leadoff batter Jenny Hess beat out an infield single and scored when the next batter, designated hitter Taylor Hess, hit her fourth home run of the season to put EC in front 2-0.

In the top half of the fourth Whitewater's Emily Epifanio (Park Ridge, IL/Maine South) led off with a single to right.  Laura Eichenold (Elmwood Park, IL/Trinity) sacrificed pinch runner Darcy Foreman (Niles, IL/North) to second, and Morgan Krisch (Plainfield, IL/Central) followed with a two out double to left center to bring in Foreman and make it 2-1.

The Blugolds put a runner on second with one out in the fourth and fifth and sixth, and Whitewater had runners on first and second with two out in the sixth, but pitching and defense continued to dominate and prevent any further run scoring.

Sophomore lefty Emma Wishau, 13-6, picked up the win for EC, giving up seven hits and two walks with two strikeouts.  Katie Boyle (Greendale/Thomas More), a junior righthander, is 13-4 after surrendering four hits and three walks with no strikeouts.  Centerfielder Mimi Ramirez (Chicago, IL/Trinity) and Epifanio had two hits apiece for Whitewater.  No one had more than one hit for Eau Claire.

GAME TWO
If you didn't do it early, you lost your chance to get to the concession stand. 

In the bottom of the third the Blugolds used small ball, hit-sacrifice-advance on fly-hit, to take a one run lead.  Top of the fourth, Whitewater came back.  Paige Evangelista (Wheaton, IL/North) singled with one out and Epifanio doubled her in to tie the game.  Eichenold followed with a two-bagger of her own to give Whitewater the lead, and Sammie Seamon singled her in to make it 3-1.

In the bottom of the fifth Amanda Houle opened with a double to left center for EC and advanced to third on a ground out.  That was followed by a walk, and then a hit batter to load the bases.  Emily Muller singled in two runs to tie put runners at the corner and tie the game 3-3.  Muller stole second.  Nikki Bromelkamp singled to center to score one run, but Muller was thrown out at third by Warhawk centerfielder Mimi Ramirez (Chicago, IL/Trinity).  Leading 4-3, the next Blugold walked to put runners on first and second with two outs.  After a UW-W pitching change, the Blugolds capitalized on a Warhawk infield error as the runner from second scored to give EC a 5-3 lead.

Eichenold, again, led off the sixth with a single to center and Seamon, again, singled for first and second with no outs.  Krisch moved them both up a base with a sacrifice bunt.  UW-W cut the deficit in half on a ground out to short, but ended the inning trailing 5-4.

The play-by-play describes a fitting seventh in which Whitewater went quickly, but not quietly.  The three outs in the seventh all "at 'em" balls ... line out to pitcher, line out to second, line out to pitcher.

Freshman righthander Bekka Houda (Lisle, IL/Lisle), 10-3, went the first 4.2 innings for UW-W.  Laura Raflik, the second of three Blugold pitchers, raised her record to 4-0.  Evangelista led all hitters with a 3x4 day, with Seamon and Eichenold contributing two hits each for Whitewater.  Houle had two of Eau Claire's seven hits.  Whitewater hit .300 (3-10) two outs, and better than that (3-8) with runners in scoring position.

For additional information:  Brenda Volk, UW-W coach