Pioneers win marathon then falter in night cap

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin-Platteville baseball team was victorious in a marathon 14-inning game, 6-5, and then fell to UW-Superior in the night cap, 7-4, on Thursday at Kendall Murray Field in Platteville, Wis. 

A combined 34 runners were left on base to go with a total of 26 hits were tallied in the 14-inning ballgame. 

The Pioneers had a chance in the top of the third to strike first, but couldn't push a runner across the dish with runners on second and third with one-out. The Yellowjackets took advantage of their chance in the bottom half of the frame, and used a RBI single to get on the board, 1-0. 

UW-Platteville answered in the top of the fourth with two runs. Sophomore Ryan Lehmann delivered a RBI single, and then with the bases loaded sophomore Todd Wienkes, drove in the other run, 2-1. 

A pair of Yellowjackets miscues helped the Pioneers score two more runs in the fifth. Lehmann came up with a two-out two-RBI single to put the Pioneers up 4-1.  Superior responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the fifth frame, making it a one-run game, 4-3. 

The Yellowjackets tied it up on a wild pitch in the seventh, 4-4. 

The Pioneers had a chance to score the go-ahead run in the ninth, but UWS reliever Graham Miller forced a ground out to get out of the jam.  

The Yellowjackets managed to load the bases with the help of the Pioneer error, but Mike Boushley struck out Connor McLeod with a pair of fast balls, putting the game into extra innings. 

Sophomore Tanner Galeazzi led the 11th inning off with a single to left, and then scored a batter later on senior Zach Demmon's fielder choice, 5-4. UWS opened the bottom half of the frame just like the Pioneers did with a single. The Yellowjackets used  a little small ball to move the tying run 90-feet away, and Alex Quinones came up with a RBI sacrifice fly, 5-5. 

Then in the 14th, the Pioneers used a some small ball of their own to put Wienkes, who led the inning off with a single, 90-feet away from the dish. Senior Ryan Duva then delivered the go-ahead RBI with a single to right field. 

Sophomore Austin Daniels, who came in relief in the 10th, struck out the first two hitters in the 14th inning, and then earned the win with a fly out to Lehmann. 

Daniels struck out eight in his five relief innings and only gave up two hits. 

Boushley ended his day with 11 strikeouts and gave up 10 hits and four runs in nine innings. 

The Yellowjackets didn't let the tough loss get them down in game two, as they put up four runs on UW-Platteville's freshman Kale Pustina in the first inning. Pustina gave up one more run in the second before getting relieved by senior Shane Murphy. 

The Pioneers finally got on the board in the fifth with a little help from UWS, as Lehmann reached on an error then scored on a RBI double by sophomore Zach Iverson, 5-1. Superior answered with two runs of their own in the fifth, 7-1.

The Pioneers responded with three runs in the top of the sixth. Sophomore Casey Schroeder led the frame off with a double, and then Demmon came up with a single. Sophomore Goerge Jester III drilled a double to left field to score Schroeder and Demmon, 7-4. 

UWS's Kyle Gauger didn't allow another run score in the final three innings, as he secured the complete-game victory.  

Murphy gave up the Pioneers' two other runs and finished with 3.2 relief innings. Freshman Eric Curtis pitched a perfect 1.1 innings and then senior Tyler Nelson held UWS scoreless while giving up four hits in the final two innings. 

The Pioneers and the Yellowjackets wrap up the four-game series on Friday at 12 p.m.