The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team survived two close games against UW-Stout to take the penultimate conference series 3-1. The Warhawks (31-3, 20-3 WIAC) took game one 6-3, and survived a late Blue Devil (14-22, 12-12 WIAC) comeback in game two for the 8-6 win.

Cade Hansen (New Braunfels, Texas/Smithson Valley) and Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) each had career days. Hansen notched 13 Ks, a career-high for the junior in the game one win, as Scolan broke the Warhawk Career Home Run record in game two with his 48th career blast for UWW.

The Warhawks started game one with a quick run on the board with an Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) RBI single. But the game turned into a defensive one, as Cade Hansen (New Braunfels, Texas/Smithson Valley) started dealing out from the mound. The Warhawks kept slowly building their lead, adding another run from Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) in the 3rd, this time with Adam Cootway (DePere, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) bringing him in.

In the 5th, Scolan rounded the bases for the third time thanks to an Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis./Bay Port) RBI, scoring the Warhawks' first three runs of the day. Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) added another 2-out RBI base hit to give the Warhawks a 4-0 lead after five.

In the 6th, Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine) capitalized on a wild pitch to score the fifth unanswered. Hansen kept working his way through the Blue Devil line-up, keeping the runs off the base path and notching the Ks. 

Hansen dealt 7.0 innings, fanning 13 total Blue Devils and only allowing two base runners. Hansen would go on to claim the win, as Scolan hit a sacrifice fly to go up 6-0 in the top of the 8th.

The Blue Devils sparked a small rally, scoring 3-runs in the bottom of the 8th with the help of a 2-run homer. Jackson Koenig (Blaine, Minn./Blaine) worked the Warhawks out of it, picking up the save in 1.1 innings of work.

In game two, the Warhawks struggled to get the offense going in the opening frames. UW-Stout used that momentum on offense, putting together three runs in the bottom of the third.

Stout going up on the board kick-started the Warhawks, though, as Scolan, Frank, and Cootway hit three consecutive doubles to open up the 4th. Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) cleared off Cootway with a two-run jack, retaking the lead 4-3. Sam Paden (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) added his own double, tallying five hits in a row, but was stranded on second as Stout got out of the inning.

The Blue Devils tied the game back up in the fourth, but Eli Frank (Bayport, Wis./Bay Port) responded with a three-run blast in the top of the frame to regain the lead. 

Both teams' offensives stalled out with nine consecutive outs, but Matt Scolan (Downers Grove, Ill./South) broke the silence with a record-breaking home run in the 7th. Scolan sent one out of the park for his 48th career home run, setting a new Warhawk record.

With the 8-4 lead, the Warhawks fell back on their defense to not allow Stout a way into the game, but the Blue Devils found a run in the bottom of the 8th to make it a three-run game. 

The Warhawks were unable to get any movement in the ninth, and Stout used that to rally some hits. The Blue Devils loaded up the bags, but a diving fly out in left field by Scolan saved what could've been the tying runs. Stout added one run on that sacrifice fly, as Brandon Brust (The Woodlands, Tex./The Woodlands) recorded the final out to pick up the save in the 8-6 win.

Ethan Wickman (Spring Green, Wis./River Valley) was credited with the win, going 3.1 innings with only 2 hits and one run.

The Warhawks sit in the driver's seat of the WIAC standings heading into the final weekend of conference play. UWW will face UW-Platteville on May 2nd and 3rd in the four game series. Alumni and the 1965/2005 teams will be recognized during the series as a part of the Warhawk Baseball Alumni Weekend. For information on Alumni Weekend, visit: https://uwwsports.com/news/2025/4/23/2025-baseball-alumni-weekend-1965-2005-team-recognition.aspx .