Feb. 10, 2006

Box Score

MORAGA, Calif. - Junior Robert Michalkiewicz pitched seven shutout innings to help lead the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee baseball team to a 2-0 victory over Saint Mary's (CA) in their season opener on Friday afternoon in California. Seniors Joe Nowicki and Jeremy Wilson each had RBI-singles to lift the Panthers (1-0) over the Gaels (1-1) and give them their first win in a season opener since the 1997 season.

"It's really a good feeling to get that first win," assistant head coach Scott Doffek said. "To get the season started on the right foot was just what we needed."

Michalkiewicz allowed just five hits and walked none, while striking out five batters. He did not allow a Gael baserunner past second base in the contest. Junior Kelby Mack and senior Jed Dolske each pitched a hitless inning to preserve the shutout, with Dolske throwing a 1-2-3 ninth for the save.

Scoreless in the third, the Panthers loaded the bases with one out. Senior Mike Goetz walked and stole second before senior Zak Rivera walked. Junior Ross McCoy reached on a fielder's choice to load the bases, but the Gaels kept the zeroes on the scoreboard when Nowicki lined into a double play back to the pitcher.

UWM broke through for a run in the fourth to take the lead. Back-to-back singles by sophomore Jesse Hart and junior Rob Brockel put runners on first and third. After a double play ball, Wilson came through, legging out a clutch two-out single that scored Hart.

Milwaukee added an insurance run in the seventh to make it 2-0. Junior Kyle Silver and Goetz led off with singles. After another double play ball, Nowicki drilled a line drive off the pitcher that scored Silver. They nearly added another, but junior pinch-runner Tyler Schill was gunned down at the plate on Hart's single for the final out in the inning.

Michalkiewicz surrendered just three harmless singles through the first four innings before getting in his first jam in the fifth. With UWM up 1-0 at the time, Saint Mary's led off the frame with a single and then sacrificed the runner to second. Michalkiewicz then induced two-straight ground balls to get out of the jam. He finished strong, retiring the final eight batters he faced before coming out after seven complete innings.

Mack and Dolske retired six of the seven batters they faced in the eighth and ninth innings, allowing only a walk in the eighth to close the door on the combined shutout.

UWM had 10 hits on the day, led by two each from Hart and Silver. Hart finished 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Rivera reached base in all four at-bats with a single and three walks. For the Gaels, Ian Gordon and Delaney Gallagher each had two hits. Ian Farmer took the loss, allowing one run on six hits in six innings.

Milwaukee continues its weekend in California with a doubleheader on Saturday. The Panthers and Gaels are scheduled to start game one of the twinbill at noon CST at Louis Guisto Field.