The No. 12 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team hit a pair of home runs and used timely pitching Thursday for a 7-4 victory against Grinnell (Iowa) at Pensacola State College's Pirate Field in Pensacola, Fla.
The Warhawks (8-3 overall), who won six of their seven games played in Pensacola, stranded 11 Pioneer runners and tallied two key insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Joey Pettit (West Bend, Wis./Marquette University HS) earned his first win of the year in relief of
Hayden Fox (Stockton, Ill./Stockton), who pitched the first 4 2/3 innings. Pettit gave way to
Nick Rector (Sewell, N.J./Clearview Regional), who tossed two scoreless frames for his first save.
Third baseman
Matt Korman (Waterford, Wis./Waterford Union) led UW-W at the plate with two hits, including a two-run homer, and two runs scored. Right fielder
Jacob DeMeyer (Harshaw, Wis./Rhinelander) knocked a solo home run and finished with two hits, while centerfielder
Zach Campbell (Burlington, Wis./Burlington) drew two walks and scored two runs.
UW-Whitewater was on the board in the bottom of the first as left fielder
Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) came around to score on a wild pitch after drawing a leadoff walk. In the second, Campbell drew his first walk, and Korman smashed his first homer of the season to make it 3-0.
After UW-W added another run on an error in the bottom of the fourth, Grinnell (2-7) hit a three-run homer to pull within one run in the top of the fifth.
Pettit stranded two runners each in the sixth and seventh innings before the Warhawks tallied in the seventh on DeMeyer's second homer of the season.
The Pioneers drew to within 5-4 with one run in the eighth, but Rector stranded a runner at third to keep the UW-W lead.
With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, designated hitter
Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) singled home one run and shortstop
Bennett Frazer (Hobart, Wis./Oconto) drove home another with a base hit to increase UW-Whitewater's lead back to three. Rector retired the side in order in the top of the ninth.
The Warhawks begin Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play Saturday and Sunday with a four-game set against UW-Stevens Point at Prucha Field at Miller Stadium. First pitch each day is set for 12 p.m.
