Pioneer Baseball - 1998 Season Review

UW-Platteville two-sport star Merrill Brunson was named to the third team all-West Region baseball squad.

Despite missing all of spring training while he was helping the Pioneers win the NCAA Division III basketball title, Brunson hit .392 with 4 home runs and 18 RBIs. The sophomore from Richland Center had a slugging percentage of .671 and an on-base percentage of .457.

Brunson scored 15 points in the Pioneers' 69-56 victory over Hope College March 21 which clinched an undefeated season and the national crown. Just eight days later, he led off the Pioneers' game with Beloit by hitting a home run on the first strike he saw. He played in 21 games, recording 31 hits and finishing with a 10-game hitting streak.

He was an all-Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection in both sports.

Four UW-Platteville baseball players earned all-Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honors, including three who made the first team.

Senior Chris Wilson, junior Neil Carney and sophomore Merrill Brunson earned first team honors, while senior Brian Potter was honorable mention.

The Pioneers finished 13-19 overall and 5-9 in the WIAC under first-year coach Rich Duncan.

CHRIS WILSON (Sr., SS, 5-10, 165, Mukwonago) was the leader of the Pioneers. He hit .319 with team-high 27 runs scored, 7 doubles, 1 HR, 21 RBIs. Defensively, he made 57 putouts, 83 assists and 11 errors at shortstop, while turning 19 double plays.

NEIL CARNEY (Jr., P, 6-3, 175, Madison) pitched unquestionably his finest game in a 6-3 victory over UW-Oshkosh, halting the Titans' 23-game winning streak and giving them their only WIAC loss of the year. He yielded three first-inning runs and then pitched eight scoreless innings. Carney was a two-time WIAC player of the week . He was 2-2 in WIAC play and 4-4 overall.

MERRILL BRUNSON (So., OF, 6-2, 190, Richland Center) missed all of spring training because of basketball season, where he was second leading scorer for the national champions. Seven days after scoring 15 points in the Pioneers' 69-55 victory over Hope College in the NCAA Division III title game, he suited up for the baseball team. On the first strike thrown to him, Brunson belted a home run to deep center against Beloit College. He finished the year with a team-leading .392 batting average and .671 slugging percentage. He had a team-high 22 hits in 14 WIAC games with two or more hits in 8 WIAC games. Brunson finished the season with a 10-game hitting streak.

BRIAN POTTER (Sr., OF, 5-11, 185, Stevens Point) batted .340 in WIAC play, hitting safely in 12 of 14 league games. Overall, his average was .315 with 5 doubles, 5 home runs and a UWP-leading 28 RBIs.

This was the third time Wilson has been honored by the league and the second time for Carney and Potter. Brunson was an all-WIAC honorable mention selection in basketball this year.

UW-River Falls ended UW-Platteville's playoff hopes with a 6-5 victory in the first game of a doubleheader at River Falls Sunday.

The Pioneers needed a sweep to move into a fourth-place tie with UW-La Crosse. River Falls won the season finale 16-7, ending the Pioneers' season at 13-19, 5-9.

Brian Potter hit two home runs, Merrill Brunson added a three-run shot, and Sam Crueger hit one out of the park Friday as the UW-Platteville baseball team earned a split at UW-La Crosse with a 12-9 victory in the nightcap.

La Crosse won the opener 7-4.

The second-game victory keeps alive the Pioneers's playoff hopes. UWP is tied with UW-Stout for fifth place at 5-7. La Crosse holds down the fourth spot at 6-6. The top four teams advance to the league playoffs next weekend. Platteville closes its regular season Saturday with a doubleheader at 4-8 UW-River Falls. La Crosse plays host to third place (7-5) UW-Whitewater, and UW-Stout is at first-place UW-Oshkosh (11-1). UW-Stevens Point holds down second place at 10-2.

Craig Kamke had a home run and a double in the opener for the Pioneers.

UW-Platteville upset UW-Oshkosh, the nation's second-ranked team, 6-3 and in the process snapped the Titans' 23-game winning streak Friday afternoon at UWP's Kendall Murray Field.

Junior pitcher Neil Carney, a Madison LaFollette graduate, allowed three first-inning runs, then held the powerful Titans scoreless for the final eight innings.

The Pioneers scored five runs in the fourth inning. Merrill Brunson walked with the bases loaded to force in one run, and Chris Wilson and Brian Potter followed with back-to-back two-run doubles.

The victory kept the Pioneers in playoff contention. They began the day tied with UW-Stout for fourth place in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The top four teams advance to the league playoffs May 9.

After the Titans came back and won the nightcap 16-3, the Pioneers' league record stands at 4-4. Platteville, who is 9-3 at home this year, is 11-13 overall. The Titans are now 26-2, 7-1.