April 30, 2010

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - Valparaiso University broke open a close game against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee baseball team with two big innings en route to a 17-3 victory Friday afternoon. The Crusaders (18-22, 6-3 Horizon) snapped the Panthers (18-19, 7-6 Horizon) winning streak at Henry Aaron Field at 18 games, scoring six runs in the fourth inning and seven more in the sixth to win going away.

The Panthers regrouped from a slow start to tie the game, 2-2, with a pair of runs in the third inning. Junior Cole Kraft doubled, senior Shaun Wegner singled and senior Ben Long followed with a line drive to right that plated both of them and made it a new game.

From there, it was all Valparaiso. The Crusaders got things started with a six-run fourth inning. They followed with seven more in the sixth to break it open.

Valpo's first six batters in the order all finished with multi-hit efforts, with every member of the lineup collecting at least one hit and scoring at least one run. Jon Gulbransen (4-3) threw a complete game, allowing three earned runs on nine hits, striking out three.

For UWM, junior Doug Dekoning was 2-for-3, including a fourth-inning home run, and Wegner finished 2-for-3 as well to extend his hitting streak to eight games. Kraft also had two hits. Junior Chad Pierce labored through his start, throwing 61 pitches in 2.2 innings, walking four.

These two teams will play a doubleheader tomorrow to finish the series, starting with a first pitch of 1 p.m.