Related Links:
NCAA Whitewater Regional Web Page
NCAA Division III Baseball Web Page
 
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team will begin play in the 2022 NCAA Division III Tournament this Friday at 11 a.m. as it hosts the Milwaukee School of Engineering to start the three-day, four-team Whitewater Regional at Prucha Field at James B. Miller Stadium.
 
The Warhawks (33-8 overall) are the No. 1 seed in the regional, while MSOE is the fourth seed. Other regional participants include No. 2 seed Aurora (Ill.) and No. 3 seed Augustana (Ill.).
 
The winner of Friday's MSOE/UW-Whitewater game will advance to face the winner of the Augustana/Aurora game on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The loser will play the Augustana/Aurora loser in an elimination game Saturday at 11 a.m.
 
Complete Schedule
 
Friday, May 20
Game 1: MSOE vs. UW-Whitewater, 11 a.m.
Game 2: Augustana vs. Aurora, 2:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, May 21
Game 3: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 11 a.m.
Game 4: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 2:30 p.m.
Game 5: Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4, 6 p.m.
 
Sunday, May 22
Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5, 11 a.m.
Game 7: Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6 (if necessary), 2:30 p.m.
 
How UW-Whitewater Got Here
 
The Warhawks earned a Pool C, or at-large, bid to the NCAA Tournament after winning the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season championship for the fifth straight season and 21st time in program history with a 25-3 league record. This year's NCAA field includes 41 automatic (Pool A) qualifiers, one independent (Pool B) selection and 18 at-large (Pool C) qualifiers.
 
UW-W dropped a pair of games in the WIAC Tournament last week, including a 14-12 setback against UW-La Crosse in an elimination game Thursday afternoon. Jacob DeMeyer (Harshaw, Wis./Rhinelander), Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) and Ryan Norton (Fond du Lac, Wis./Fond du Lac) tallied three hits apiece and Scolan finished with five runs batted in to lead UW-Whitewater, which was the top seed in the tournament.
 
The Warhawks had won 18 straight games to close the regular season prior to Thursday's losses.
 
Warhawks in the Rankings
 
Despite the losses in the WIAC Tournament, UW-Whitewater remained among the nation's top 10 in both national polls. UW-W enters the tournament at No. 7 in the Collegiate Baseball/American Baseball Coaches Association NCAA Division III Poll and No. 9 in the D3baseball.com/National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 25.
 
The Warhawks stayed at No. 1 in Region IX according to the final NCAA Regional Rankings of the 2022 season.
 
UW-Whitewater in the NCAA Tournament
 
The Warhawks will make their 14th straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 24th appearance in program history. UW-W is 72-45 (.615 winning percentage) all time in the national tournament as an NCAA Division III member.
 
UW-Whitewater has made seven appearances in the NCAA Division III World Series – 1989, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2011, 2014 and 2016. The Warhawks also reached the World Series as a member of the NAIA in 1965.
 
UW-W earned its first national championship in 2005 as it started the season with a 19-0 record on its way to a school-record 45 wins. The Warhawks won the WIAC regular season title and capped a 7-1 run through the NCAA Tournament with a 10-4 victory against SUNY Cortland in the national championship game.
 
In 2014, the Warhawks swept the WIAC regular season and tournament championships and posted a perfect 8-0 mark in the NCAA Tournament, including a 7-0 win against Emory (Ga.) in the national title game.
 
Head Coach John Vodenlich
 
John Vodenlich is in his 18th season (19th year) at the helm of the program. He has led the Warhawks to 14 WIAC regular season championships, six conference tournament titles and 16 NCAA Tournament appearances, including six trips to the Division III World Series and national championships in 2005 and 2014.
 
Vodenlich is a two-time National Coach of the Year, six-time Regional Coach of the Year and 10-time WIAC Coach of the Year. He entered the 2021 season ranked fourth among active Division III coaches in winning percentage and 29th in wins, and 14th all time in Division III history in winning percentage.
 
Vodenlich enters the NCAA Tournament with a career record of 679-241-1 (.738).
 
Pitching Staff Among Nation's Best
 
UW-Whitewater ranks among the top teams in NCAA Division III in several pitching statistical categories. The staff is second in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.86-to-1), sixth in strikeouts per nine innings (10.6), ninth in walks allowed per nine innings (2.74), 11th in walks plus hits per innings pitched (1.24), 13th in earned run average (3.50), 21st in hits allowed per nine innings (8.38) and 22nd in shutouts (5).
 
Four Warhawk pitchers rank among the top five in the WIAC in earned run average, including WIAC Pitcher of the Year Westin Muir (Highlands Ranch, Colo./St. Charles North (Ill.)) at 2.54 and fellow first team all-conference selections Kade Lancour (Nekoosa, Wis./Nekoosa) at 2.66, Cam Anfang (Sullivan, Wis./Jefferson) at 2.70 and Cade Berendt (Germantown, Wis./Germantown) at 3.06. Muir is 11th in Division III in wins (9), while Berendt is 25th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (7.44-to-1).
 
Stolen Bases Propelling Warhawks
 
UW-Whitewater has been able to keep constant pressure on opposing pitchers and defenses thanks to its aggressiveness on the base paths.
 
The Warhawks enter the weekend ranked 11th in NCAA Division III with 115 stolen bases, including 2.80 per game, good for 18th in the nation.
 
All eight of UW-W's position players enter the regional with eight or more stolen bases. Shortstop Bennett Frazer (Hobart, Wis./Oconto) paces the group with 15 steals in 17 attempts.
 
Lineup Balance Keying Offensive Success
 
Entering the regional, UW-Whitewater has received contributions from up and down the lineup on its way to a conference-best .318 batting average.
 
Seven of the Warhawks' top eight hitters are batting .315 or better, and six enter the national tournament with 29 RBIs or more. Seven own an on-base percentage higher than .400.
 
Scouting the Rest of the Regional
 
MSOE (27-16) won the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference championship with a 4-0 run through the NACC Tournament, including a 4-2 win in 10 innings against Edgewood in the title game. The Raiders are led offensively by Micah Overley (.393 avg.) and Collin Truitt (10 HR, 44 RBIs) and on the mound by Tyler Gronert (11-2, 1.96 ERA, 87 SO) and Nolan Vincent (6-2, 1 SV, 1.77 ERA). MSOE is ranked seventh in Region VIII.
 
Aurora (33-9), ranked second in Region VIII and 20th in the nation, is an at-large qualifier out of the NACC. The Spartans are led by Corey Vondra (.377 avg.) and Justin Santori (.373 avg., 12 HR, 68 RBIs) on offense and by pitchers Jack Fisher (7-1, 2.44 ERA, 60 SO) and Nick Malmberg (7-0, 3.33 ERA).
 
Augustana (33-10) is the automatic qualifier after winning the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament with four straight wins, including a 10-9 triumph in 14 innings against North Central in the championship game, one of three one-run games it claimed in the tournament. The Vikings are led offensively by Kyle Campbell (.327 avg., 43 RBIs) and Jacob Barker (.325 avg., 21 XBH, 40 RBis) and on the mound by Harrison Boushele (5-2, 103 SO), Josh Wintroub (6-3, 2.48 ERA) and Bryce Luckey (9-3, 2 SV, 3.02 ERA).