The No. 9 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team used solid pitching and a four-run third inning Friday to defeat Framingham State (Mass.) 4-1 in a non-conference affair at Lake Myrtle Park in Auburndale, Fla.
 
Senior right-hander Curtis Morgan (Green Lake/Green Lake) pitched his way to a win for the Warhawks (2-0 overall), allowing just one run on four hits while striking out five.
 
Senior lefty John Olejniczak (Valparaiso, IN/Valparaiso) tossed 1 2/3 innings of relief and junior RHP Matt Langlie (Mundelein, IL/Mundelein) got the final out of the eighth.
 
Freshman righty Riley Gruetzmacher (Oconto Falls, Wis./Oconto Falls) earned his first career save, leaving runners at the corners with two outs as Framingham State (2-2) tried to rally.
 
Sophomore centerfielder Daytona Bryden (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) finished 3-for-4 with one run and one run batted in. Sophomore left fielder Will Helbing (Waunakee, Wis./Waunakee) plated two runs, while junior third baseman Steve Chamberlain (Rockford, IL/Guilford) finished 2-for-4.
 
The Rams struck first, scoring on a groundout in the top of the first to take a 1-0 lead.
 
UW-Whitewater was retired in order until the third inning, when junior shortstop Jordan Kuczynski (Germantown/Germantown) doubled to right to lead off the frame. Two batters after a base hit through the left side by freshman third baseman Cal Aldridge (Crystal Lake, Ill./Prairie Ridge), Bryden plated Kuczynski to tie the game.
 
Helbing, the next hitter, put the Warhawks ahead for good with a two-run triple, and came around to score on the same play on a throwing error.
 
Olejniczak induced an inning-ending double play in the seventh, and picked off a leadoff runner in the eighth to help maintain the lead into the ninth.
 
Framingham brought the tying run to the plate, but Gruetzmacher caught a comebacker to preserve the victory.
 
UW-Whitewater continues action tomorrow at 10 a.m. Central Time against Rutgers-Camden (N.J.) at Henley Field in Lakeland, Fla.