WHITEWATER, Wisc. – More history was made on Saturday afternoon as Centre baseball picked up its first NCAA Tournament victory in program history, knocking off the Crown College Polars 16-5 in an elimination game to stay alive.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
- Determined not to be doomed by a slow start like in yesterday's loss, the Colonels came out firing with a crooked number in the first inning.
Josh Cunningham led off with a walk, followed by consecutive singles from
Ayden Lohr and
Ben Prather for a quick 1-0 lead.
- With one out in the inning,
Aaron Lopez,
Michael Lynch and
Jamie Laframboise worked three straight bases on balls, with the last two coming with the bases loaded to produce Centre RBIs, giving the Colonels a 3-0 edge.
- In the third, Crown got back into the game as the Polars led off with a walk and then delivered three straight hits to tie the game at 3-3.
Luc Morgan settled down and retired the next two batters to preserve the tie.
- After stranding the bases loaded in the fifth, the Centre offense took advantage of another opportunity in the sixth, loading the bases after Cunningham singled, Lohr walked and Prather reached on an error.
Evan Weyler lifted a fly ball deep enough to score Cunningham from third to put Centre back on top 4-3. Lopez then poked one the other way for another RBI for the Colonels. A sac fly from Laframboise scored Prather to give Centre a 6-3 lead.
- The Polars struck back in the seventh with a two-run triple that cut the Centre margin to one run, but with the tying run on third,
David Kinsbrunner got out of the inning and the Centre bats caught fire again in the next two frames.
- Prather led off the Centre eighth with a walk, followed by an opposite field single by Weyler. Lopez then reached on a bunt single that eventually scored Prather for a 7-5 Centre lead.
- After Lynch walked to load the bases, Laframboise smacked a double for a pair of RBIs.
Conner Jackson and Lohr each delivered RBI base hits to give the Colonels five runs for the inning.
- In the ninth, Weyler led off with a ground rule double. With two outs and pinch runner
Carson Mire on third, Laframboise came through with a bunt single to score the speedy Mire.
Karson Thompson walked and Jackson followed suit to load the bases, which allowed Cunningham to clear them with one swing of the bat, belting a grand slam over the left field fence to cap off the scoring for the day.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- After being shut out for the first time all season with just four hits yesterday, the Centre offense responded in a big way with 16 runs on 16 hits, with Cunningham and Laframboise delivering three each.
- Every Centre player in the starting lineup scored at least one run, led by three each from Cunningham and Prather.
- Eight different Centre players recorded RBIs in the win, led by Laframboise with five and Cunningham with four from his grand slam in the ninth.
- Kinsbrunner was credited with the win, pitching the final 4.2 innings.
NEXT UP
Centre will play another elimination game later today against the loser of the Wisconsin-Whitewater vs. California Lutheran game.
