Titans Finish Series Win Over Blue Devils, Tomasiewicz Reaches 200 Career Wins
RIVER FALLS, Wis.- In a doubleheader at First National Bank Field in River Falls, the No. 20 nationally ranked UW-Oshkosh baseball team (18-6, 9-3 WIAC) downed UW-Stout (11-9, 4-8 WIAC) in both of Saturday's games to complete the series win. The Titans are now tied with UW-La Crosse for the best record in the WIAC and head coach Kevin Tomasiewicz became the third Oshkosh coach to reach 200 career wins.
Game One Recap
LJ Waco started for the Titans and Trevor Miller started for the Blue Devils.
Oshkosh scored three in the top of the first inning on singles from Zach Taylor and Mason Kirchberg and a bases loaded walk from Jack McNamara. The Blue Devils responded in the bottom half of the inning with a run batted in by Jacoby Endreas with a double to left field.
Stout scored four more runs over the second and third innings to take a 5-3 lead. Levi Wilson batted a run in in the second with a single to left field and Leyten Bowers walked a run in, and Justin Sedin scored on an error.
Oshkosh got back on the board in the fifth inning. Kirchberg hit another single to score Matt Scherrman.
In the sixth, Riley Boushack hit a home run off Waco to make the score 6-4.
In consecutive at bats, the Titans tied the game back up in the seventh when Nicholas Shiu hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Scherrman and Kirchberg hit a double to left center to score Taylor. Connor Giusti knocked Miller out of the game with an RBI double to left center. Luke Kallod came in as relief, but only lasted four batters. Jake Andersen singled to center to score Giusti and Ethan Schreier scored Andersen with a center field single. Kallod was replaced after Schreier's at bat by Brock Burg. Taylor sent two more runs in with a single to center, making the score 11-6. Oshkosh seven-run seventh inning was ended when Scherrman was caught attempting to steal third.
Kirchberg hit his sixth home run of the season in the top of the eighth to give Oshkosh a 12-6 lead. Jake Surane recorded a two-run double, scoring both Chase Marsh and Giusti. Luke Costley came in as the fourth Blue Devil pitcher of the game. At the end of the top of the eighth, Oshkosh led Stout 14-6. Colin Hageman hit a home run in the bottom of the inning. After Waco got two outs, he was relieved by Logan King, who forced a pop out to Giusti at third to end the inning.
Neither team scored in the ninth and Oshkosh won game one 14-7.
Kirchberg led the Titans hitting, going four-for-five with both a home run and a double. He scored twice and sent four runs in.
Waco (4-0) earned the win with 7.2 innings pitched, allowing seven runs (three earned) on 10 hits, two walks and six strikeouts. Miller (1-2), who pitched 6.1 innings and allowed eight runs on 10 hits and five walks with four strikeouts was assigned the loss.
Game Two Recap
The Titans' Cameron Mulvihill started on the mound, facing off against the Blue Devils' Cooper Beving.
Stout's Endreas sent in a run in the bottom of the first with a single and an error, making it all four games in the series that a team scored in the first inning. He scored the following at bat off a double by Jack Schirpke.
Giusti sent in the first run for Oshkosh in the second inning, kicking off a seven-run inning capped off by Zach Taylor's team-leading seventh home run of the year with a three-run shot off relief pitcher Connor Hemme. The Titans' led 7-2 going into the third inning.
In the bottom of the third, the Blue Devils scored on a bases loaded single by Schirpke but stranded the rest when Mulvihill struck out Bowers swinging.
Bringing the score to 7-5 in the bottom of the fourth, Stout's Parker Hagebock singled and Sedin doubled.
Kirchberg scored Shiu in the top of the sixth with a double but was thrown out trying to stretch the hit out to a double.
Oshkosh extended their lead in the top of the eighth to 10-5. Scherrman hit an RBI single to left field, knocking Hemme out of the game and Kirchberg hit an RBI single to center off Nathan Weckop. With bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth, Aaron Huibregtse relieved Mulvihill.
The Blue Devils scored two in the inning on a single to left by Wilson and an unassisted groundout to first by Boushack.
Two runs scored for Oshkosh in the top of the ninth when Scherrman hit a single to right center, for a 12-8 lead headed into the last half inning.
Scherrman paced Oshkosh, going two-for-three with two walks, two runs scored and three RBI.
Mulvihill (4-1) earned the win in 7.0 innings of work, allowing eight runs (six earned) on nine hits and three walks while striking out eight. Huibregtse earned his first save, pitching 2.0 innings, striking out two while allowing one hit. Beving (0-1) was assigned the loss in 1.2 innings. He allowed six runs (five earned) on four hits and three walks and struck out two.
Looking Forward
The Titans will return home for a non-conference doubleheader against UW-Stevens Point on Wednesday (April 19) at Alumni Stadium. The first game will begin at 1 p.m.
Tomasiewicz Joins 200 Career Wins Club
Head coach Kevin Tomasiewicz joined the 200 career win club on Saturday afternoon. Tom Lechnir (728-292-1), who coached the Titans from 1989-2013 holds the conference record in wins and Russ Tiedemann (501-168-2) led the Titans for two stints, from 1968-69 and 1971-88.