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NCAA Central Regional Web Page
 
The No. 1 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team's incredible 2018 season came to a close Sunday with a pair of setbacks at the NCAA Central Regional at GCS Ballpark in Sauget, Ill.
 
The Warhawks were downed by Rhodes (Tenn.) by a 6-3 score and against Texas-Tyler by a 4-1 count in the tournament's final game of the day.
 
UW-Whitewater concludes the 2018 campaign with a 33-8 record, claiming its fifth Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season championship with a 20-4 mark. The team was in the midst of its 11th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Following the conclusion of the regional, junior designated hitter Cal Aldridge (Crystal Lake, Ill./Prairie Ridge) and freshman pitcher Matt O'Sullivan (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) were named to the Central Regional All-Tournament Team. Aldridge finished the tournament 10-for-17 (.588) at the plate with two home runs, four runs scored and five runs batted in. O'Sullivan made four relief appearances during the regional, striking out seven batters over 5 2/3 shutout innings.
 
In the winner's bracket game against Rhodes (32-14), a five-run third inning by the Lynx broke a 1-1 tie and proved to be the difference in the contest.
 
The Warhawks fought back on a solo homer in the fifth by Aldridge and a sacrifice fly by sophomore first baseman Ben Wilkins (Sussex, Wis./Lake Country Lutheran) in the ninth, when the team loaded the bases with one out.
 
After Wilkins' sacrifice fly, UW-Whitewater brought the tying run to the plate again but was unable to cut further into the Rhodes lead. The team left 11 runners on base in the affair.
 
Aldridge finished 3-for-5 with two runs batted in, and senior centerfielder Daytona Bryden (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) collected two hits, two runs and the 81st stolen base of his career to pass Jim Bathey (1984-87) as the program's all-time leader in steals. He also matched the season record of 29 stolen bases previously shared by Bathey (1987) and Daniel Putnam (2011). Bryden also finished the day with a .488 batting average, the highest in one season on record by 30 points.
 
Senior pitcher Heath Renz (Jefferson, Wis./Jefferson) took the loss, dropping to 5-3 on the season. O'Sullivan pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief, and freshman Westin Muir (St. Charles, Ill./North) tossed four scoreless frames to finish the contest.
 
In the rematch against Texas-Tyler (33-17), which the Warhawks defeated 8-2 on Saturday, the Patriots tallied two runs in the second inning and never trailed in the game.
 
Freshman third baseman Nick Santoro (Naperville, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) plated a run on a groundout in the bottom of the second to provide UW-Whitewater with its lone run.
 
Senior first baseman Blake Fleischman (Germantown, Wis./Germantown) registered two hits and one run to lead the offense.
 
Junior Sam Heilenbach (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) pitched the first four innings, falling to 5-2 with the loss. Sophomore Riley Gruetzmacher (Oconto Falls, Wis./Oconto Falls) and O'Sullivan finished the game, each contributing multiple-inning stints.