May 2, 2009

Box Score: Game 1
Box Score: Game 2

LORAIN, Ohio - Sophomore Doug Dekoning drove in the tying run with two outs in the ninth inning and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee baseball team added four runs in the tenth to record a 10-7 victory over Cleveland State University Saturday afternoon in game two of a doubleheader. The Panthers (20-20, 9-5 Horizon) trailed the Vikings (15-24, 7-9 Horizon) on three different occasions in the second game before breaking it open with a four-run rally in the tenth inning at Pipe Yard Stadium. UWM came up short of the league sweep after giving up two late unearned runs in the opener in falling, 3-2.

"We really battled in the second game," Milwaukee head coach Scott Doffek said. "Our offense really stuck to it and they made a couple of mistakes that we capitalized on. Doug Dekoning came up with a real gritty at bat to get that two-out, two-strike hit to tie the game."

Down 6-4 in the eighth inning, the Panthers pulled within one on a run-scoring single from junior Tim Patzman. Then, in the ninth, senior Johann Andes led off with a pinch-hit single. Two outs later, Dekoning plated pinch-runner junior Nino Guerrero with the tying run to send it to extra frames for the first time this season.

UWM struck for four runs in the tenth, plating the first on a bases-loaded walk to junior Shaun Wegner, another on a sacrifice fly and two more on a two-out single from senior Andy Gerhartz.

Freshman Cameron Amsrud (3-0) picked up the win with 2.1 innings of hitless relief, striking out four batters.

Down 4-2 in the seventh, UWM would tie the game at 4-4 before CSU rallied to retake a two-run cushion in it's half of the frame. The Panthers would score once on a single by senior Andy Hetebrueg while Gerhartz also drove in a run with a ground out.

Earlier in the game, Dekoning and Patzman each homered, with Patzman hitting his league-leading 10th of the season in the fifth inning.

The 11-hit attack was led by Patzman, who finished 3-for-5 with three runs scored and two driven in, and by Gerhartz with three RBI's. Dekoning and freshman Paul Hoenecke each finished with two hits, while sophomore Cole Kraft extended his hitting streak to 13 games in the contest. Ryan Franks had a team-high three hits for the Vikings.

In the opener, the Panthers wasted a quality start from senior Brad Lusti (4-3), as they led 2-0 late but allowed a pair of unearned runs in the sixth and the seventh innings to fall into a 2-2 deadlock. An eighth-inning CSU sac fly gave it a 3-2 lead and the Panthers could not rally in the ninth, quietly going 1-2-3.

Lusti ended up scattering nine hits in 7.1 innings of work, striking out five, walking one and allowing just one earned run. Cleveland State's Josh Hungerman (4-5) earned the victory, striking out nine and walking none in eight-complete innings on the hill.

"The guys were discouraged to let game one get away from us," Doffek said. "But, you have to tip your cap to Josh Hungerman - he threw a really good game. We made a couple of miscues that really cost us at the end of the game."

UWM had just five hits in the contest, but an infield single by Gerhartz scored a run in the third and another run came home in the fourth inning on an error to make it 2-0 and Lusti looked to make it stand up until late.

Senior Josh Groves had two of the team's five hits, with Kraft, Gerhartz and Patzman all adding a hit each.

These two teams will be right back at it Sunday, playing a doubleheader set for an 11 a.m. CST start time.

"We were fortunate to get the win in game two," Doffek said, "So we will come back tomorrow, hopefully play some tighter baseball and see what happens."