The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team split games against UW-La Crosse in a battle between two top-10 teams. The Warhawks fell in game 1, 6-1, but a huge eighth inning on offense closed the game out in 8 innings, with the Warhawks winning 23-1.
In the first game, UW-La Crosse went up 2-0 after the third inning, but a
Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) solo home run closed the deficit to just one run. The Eagles picked the run back up with their own solo home run.
After a few scoreless innings, the Eagles added a 3-run home run in the bottom of the eighth that would go on to seal the first game in favor of the Eagles, 6-1.
The Warhawks regained some of the momentum in the second game, going up 4-0 in the third inning.
Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) hit a 2-RBI double, with
Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) and
Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) each having an RBI single to add the other two runs.
The Eagles added a run of their own in the bottom of the third, hitting a sacrifice fly to left field, but
Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis./Bay Port) and
Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) both hit solo home runs over the 5th and 6th to put the Warhawks up 6-1.
With a 6-1 lead heading into the 8th, the Warhawks went on a hitting run, scoring a total of 17 runs on 10 hits. During the inning the Warhawks had five doubles and two home runs. Thies had a 3-run homer with Hopper hitting a two-run one later on in the inning.
The Warhawks allowed two base runners in the bottom of the eighth, but UW-La Crosse was unable to cut away at the deficit, with the Warhawks picking up the 23-1 win in 8 innings.
Offensively in the second game, Hopper hit in 5 runs, with Scolan and Thies each added 3 of their own. Five other Warhawks had two RBIs in the second game.
Jack Hagen (San Clemente, Cal./San Clemente) picked up the win in the second game, going 7 innings only allowing 2 hits and striking out five batters.
The Warhawks will finish out the series against UW-La Crosse tomorrow, with the first game of the double-header set to start at 12 PM.