Mark Schatzer got a hit and came around to score Chapman's first run. Photo by Ryan Coleman, d3photography.com

Ryan Scheetz beat the tag from Chapman's Ryan Kordich to give Buena Vista a 2-1 lead in the sixth inning. Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com

By Jim Dixon
D3sports.com

GRAND CHUTE, Wis. --  On a day in the tournament where offenses traditionally rule the game, Buena Vista and Chapman played a low scoring affair with the Panthers taking the game 3-2 to advance in the Division III Baseball Championship. Chapman will play the winner of Monday's Keystone-Marietta game on Tuesday morning.

"An epic game," said Chapman coach Tom Tereschuk. "Buena Vista is a talented team and the game could have gone either way. We are playing the best baseball we have all year and came into here with a lot of confidence and feeling like we will going to enjoy it."

Jon Ringblom was the surprise of the day. Starting for only the fourth time this year, Ringlom pitched effectively into the seventh getting a no-decision. Chapman's Travis McGee weathered the first inning and matched Ringblom's performance, pitching his first complete game of his career.

"It was the biggest start of Jon's career," said Buena Vista head coach Steve Eddie. "He did a great job keeping us in the game."

"The key today was Travis going out there and pitch after pitch making quality pitches," said Tereschuk. "He has the ability to be a dominating type guy and that is what we got out of him today.

"My slider was good and I was able to locate my fastball," said McGee. "It was the best that I have felt."

Buena Vista took advantage of a error on the pitcher to score the game's first run. Brad Blum walked and moved to second after McGee threw the ball past the first baseman in a failed pickoff attempt. Brock Yossi sacrificed him to third and he came home on a Michael Hoffman single.

Chapman got the equalizer in the fourth. Mark Saatzer singled and took second on Tyler Hadzinski's sacrifice hit. Adam Kordich's single put runners on the corners, while James Parr's single scored Saalzar to tie the game. Charlie Piro would load the bases with one out but Buena Vista would strand them there.

Plays at the plate was the highlight of the sixth inning. Kordich, on via an error by Blum at short, tried to score on Parr's double to right center. Kordich was called out on a close play at the plate to keep the score tied. In Buena Vista half of the inning, Ryan Scheetz had a base knock up the middle of the infield. On Joe Paletta's first extra base hit of the series, Scheetz slid around the tag by Kordich to give the Beavers a 2-1 lead.

Chapman knotted the score just before the stretch. Tyler Sunrbrock led off the inning with a single to left field. After a Troy Newman was hit by the Ringblom, Steve Greenberg moved both runners into scoring position with a bunt sacrifice. After a line out, Ringblom was replaced by Kyle Dupic. Dupic deflected a ball just far enough from the second baseman to allow Saatzer to reach and Surnbrock to score.

Chapman scratched out a run in the ninth for its first lead and made it hold up. Following a Newman single and a Steve Greenberg sacrifice, Adam Velez stepped up to the plate. In the seventh Velez smoked a ball that found the back of the pitcher's glove. In the ninth, his ball scooted through the right side, allowing Newman to score the winning run.

"In the seventh, I hit the ball as hard as I could in that situation and got unlucky," said Velez. "I got some tips from the hitting coach and I got a piece of the ball. Getting the game winning hit was awesome."