WHITEWATER – The No. 3 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team won two of its three games Saturday, forcing a deciding championship game with a 10-5 triumph over UW-Stevens Point on the second day of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship tournament at Prucha Field at James B. Miller Stadium.
The Warhawks (33-8 overall) dropped their first contest of the day, 5-0, against the Pointers and defeated UW-Oshkosh 4-1 in an elimination game before knocking off UW-Stevens Point to close the day.
Sunday's final against the Pointers (30-12) will begin at noon at Miller Stadium.
UW-Whitewater started its third game with three runs in the top of the first inning and never trailed. The Warhawks tallied 14 hits, led by sophomore third baseman Steve Chamberlain, who was 3-for-5, including a triple, with three runs and a run batted in.
Senior left fielder Trey Cannon, senior second baseman Nick Kuhlmann, senior catcher Mike Mierow and freshman centerfielder Daytona Bryden posted two hits apiece. Mierow knocked in two runs, and Kuhlmann and Bryden had one RBI apiece.
Junior pitcher Curtis Morgan remained unbeaten for the season at 8-0, tossing 5 1/3 innings. The right-hander scattered six hits and struck out three in the effort.
Sophomores Austin Finn, John Olejniczak and senior Andrew Lowe combined to allow just one run in 3 2/3 frames of relief.
The Warhawks led 7-0 through 5 1/2 innings before UW-Stevens Point plated four in the bottom of the sixth and another in the bottom of the eighth to narrow the deficit to two.
UW-Whitewater added three insurance runs in the top of the ninth on RBI hits by Chamberlain, Mierow and Bryden.
First Game – UW-Stevens Point 5, UW-Whitewater 0
The Warhawks left 10 runners on base, including six in the first three innings.
The Pointers took the lead with a run in the fourth and extended their lead to five with four in the top of the sixth.
Kuhlmann, Bryden and senior designated hitter Adam Gregory registered two hits apiece to lead the offense. Senior shortstop Mikole Pierce posted a two-out double in the third for UW-Whitewater's lone extra base hit of the contest.
Senior left-hander Colin Grove took the loss on the mound for the Warhawks, falling to 8-2 after striking out six in six innings of work. Olejniczak and freshman right-hander Heath Renz recorded scoreless outings following Grove in relief.
Second Game – UW-Whitewater 4, UW-Oshkosh 1
The Warhawks trailed 1-0 until the bottom of the seventh, when Mierow knocked a two-run single up the middle.
UW-Whitewater added two more in the bottom of the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Chamberlain and a two-out RBI single by Bryden, who led the team with three hits.
Sophomore righty Mike Nompleggi improved to 5-0 after tossing seven innings, allowing just three hits in the outing. Senior right-hander Andrew Lowe picked up his third save of the year.