May 26, 2006

Box Score

FAIRBORN, Ohio - Senior Jeremy Wilson and junior Rob Brockel both hit home runs to help lead the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee baseball team to an 8-3 victory over Cleveland State on Friday afternoon at Nischwitz Stadium. The Panthers (32-24) won the elimination game to advance in the Horizon League Tournament by scoring at least one run in every inning from the third on against the Vikings (10-42).

Senior Korey Keller (4-3) helped out with five innings of work to record the victory. He started on a roll, retiring the first 11 batters he faced. He finished with three strikeouts, four hits allowed and just one walk.

Following a 39-minute rain delay in the middle of the third, Milwaukee got to Cleveland State starter Nathan Schaefer (1-8) for two runs, putting together three hits in the frame. Senior Mike Goetz, sophomore Jesse Hart and senior Joe Nowicki all singled, with Nowicki's safety plating a run. Junior Ross McCoy added a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 at the time.

The Panthers turned to the long ball next, with Wilson sending one down the left field line in the fourth and Brockel making it 4-1 at the time with a shot to left center in the fifth inning.

CSU had gotten on the board in the fifth on John Westra's RBI-double, but UWM continued to pour it on, scoring in every inning from the third on.

The Vikings cut the lead to 5-3 in their half of the seventh, but UWM responded immediately with two of its own in the bottom of the frame to regain its five-run cushion. Goetz and Hart led off with back-to-back triples to score one before Brockel added another run-scoring hit.

Plenty of records were broken in the game, as Goetz toppled the school record for total bases on that triple in the seventh. That gave him 153 total bases, breaking the mark of 150 held by Chad Sadowski in the 1999 season. His triple was also his sixth of the season, tying the school record. On the mound, senior Jed Dolske came on in the eighth, pitching a perfect 1.1 innings to record his seventh save of the year and 21st of his career, setting a new Milwaukee career record. Dolske had been tied at 20 career saves with Jon Schreiner (1996-98).

Milwaukee finished with 11 hits, with Hart (3-for-4), Brockel (2-for-2), Goetz (2-for-4) and Wilson (2-for-4) all adding multi-hit games. Marc Sikora and John Westra both finished with two hits to lead the Vikings.

Milwaukee won't get much time off, playing top-seeded UIC in a 7:45 p.m. EST elimination game. The Flames were upset, 6-4, in the first contest on Friday morning to set up the unexpected No. 1 vs. No. 2 elimination game match-up.