The team with the quirky nickname will play on the final weekend of the Division III baseball season. Webster athletics photo by Matt Saitz

By Jim Rodenbush
for D3sports.com

Before this year, the Webster University baseball team had reached the NCAA tournament four times in five seasons under Bill Kurich.

Each of those appearances brought a notable achievement for the Gorloks. There was the program’s first NCAA win in 2007, a run to the regional championship game in 2008, consecutive victories to start the 2010 tournament and an 11-1 win over top-ranked Christopher Newport last season.

But, each time, the Gorloks saw their season end during the first weekend of play. So, when his team earned another NCAA appearance in 2012, the Webster coach was looking for a breakthrough.

“It was time, no question,” Kurich said. “Just competing and playing well was not good enough with this group.”

The breakthrough happened in resounding fashion. Webster earned its first appearance in the NCAA Division III World Series, and the first by a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference team, by going unbeaten in the Central Regional in Millington, Tenn. The Gorloks won four games by a combined score of 30-10, including two victories over No. 7 Birmingham-Southern and one win against No. 22 DePauw.

Webster (35-12) will open the World Series against No. 9 Wheaton (Mass.) on Friday in Appleton, Wis.

For the Gorloks, reaching this point has meant overcoming a rash of season-ending injuries. In all, the team has lost seven players, including three starting pitchers and its closer. Most notable among the group was sophomore lefty Zach Schneider, who led the team with seven wins and a 1.86 ERA last season.

“It was a big question mark, getting past all the injuries,” Kurich said. “We had a built-in excuse. We could have rolled over.”

Junior outfielder Cody Stevenson, the Gorloks’ leadoff hitter who is tied for the NCAA lead with 58 stolen bases, said the injuries proved to be a test of the team’s mettle.

“We thought we had a really good shot (of advancing far in the NCAA tournament),” he said. “As the season progressed, and guys started getting knocked down with injuries, we had to ask ourselves: Would this really happen or would we fall apart? Midway through the season, we were able to see that guys were stepping up that needed to step up.”

Among the standouts for Webster has been senior first baseman Tom Henke, who leads the team with a .397 average, seven home runs and 48 RBI, and was named the SLIAC Player of the Year.

Right-hander David Mueller has helped filled the gap left by Schneider by posting an 8-2 record with a 1.91 ERA and striking out 102 batters in 85 innings. The senior was the named the conference’s Pitcher of the Year.

“At first, we didn’t know how to handle (the injuries),” Henke said. “We knew it would be really easy to throw in the towel right there. We weren’t going to let that happen. We wouldn’t let it dictate how the season went.”

After a 10-8 start, Webster gained momentum during conference play. The Gorloks went 20-4 in the SLIAC and won the regular-season title for the sixth consecutive year.

After beating Fontbonne, 14-3, in the conference tournament championship, the Gorloks were a confident group heading into the Central Regional. Stevenson said the biggest reason was their opening game against Washington U., a team they already had beaten this season.

“We knew we had a pretty good chance of beating them again,” Stevenson said. “That really helped us out. We had a positive mind set coming in.”

The Gorloks won their opener, 11-5, then knocked off DePauw, 10-2, behind a combined six hits, five RBIs and four runs from sophomore shortstop Taylor Stoulp, the regional’s MVP. After beating top-seeded Birmingham-Southern, 6-1, the Gorloks again faced the Panthers needing to win one of two games to advance to the World Series.

The Gorloks took a 3-0 lead into the top of the ninth of the deciding game. After junior right-hander Cody Hafeli walked the leadoff hitter, Kurich brought in Mueller.

A pair of singles followed and a two-out, two-run error cut the Gorloks’ lead to one run. But with two runners on and a full count, Mueller struck out Panthers center fielder Trey Chambers to clinch Webster’s spot in the World Series.

For Webster, it turned out the fifth time was the charm. Webster athletics photo by Matt Saitz

“There were a lot of emotions, that’s for sure,” Henke said. “We got into a little bit of a jam. When it got down to first and second, with a 3-2 count, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that he would pull if off. It was a crazy experience. That’s as much as I can explain it.”

For the Gorloks, a spot in the World Series culminated an improbable rise for a program that struggled mightily for a good part of its existence. Webster, which first fielded a team in 1987, didn’t record a winning season until 2004. At one point in the mid-1990s, the team lost 144 of 158 games.

The program’s turnaround started behind coach Marty Hunsucker, who took the team to NCAA tournament appearances in 2005 and 2006. Kurich, 34, was hired following the ’06 season.

The baseball team’s ensuing success has provided a level of inspiration for the entire Webster athletic department, athletic director Tom Hart said.

“If you work hard, and do things the right way, there are possibilities,” Hart said. “We’re not just talking about winning conference championships. We should be striving for this type of regional recognition and a chance to win at the national level.”

Now, after taking five tries to breakthrough at regionals, Kurich is hoping to speed things up at the next level.

“It was the first thing we talked about, after the championship game,” he said. “We don’t want to get to the World Series three, four, five times before getting over the hump. We’re going up there to win it.”

Webster, which has won eight consecutive games and 25 of 29 overall, is facing Wheaton (Mass.) for the second time this season. The Gorloks dropped a 1-0 decision back in March in Winter Haven, Fla.

To prepare for the rematch, Kurich said the team has gone back to business as usual since returning from the regional.

“We’re doing everything we can to make sure our guys aren’t going up there to enjoy a nice hotel, and have a barbecue and a banquet, and get their butts kicked and go home,” he said.