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Warhawksget gift in opener

MOLINE, ILL. — John Vodenlich and the UW-Whitewater baseball team will take tournament victories any way they can get them.

The Warhawks (27-17) scored three unearned runs, including two in the bottom of the ninth inning, to defeat Washington University of St. Louis, 3-2, in the opener of the NCAA Division III regional Thursday night.

“We’re living large,” Warhawk coach John Vodenlich said.

The Warhawks will play Milllsaps (33-8) at 4 p.m. today. Milllsaps (Miss.) defeated Wartburg (Iowa), 5-3.

“I just met their coach,” Vodenlich said. “He’s a great guy, a baseball guy. He runs a real nice program.

“It’s not their first time here. In fact, they hosted this a few years ago. So they’ve been around and are a powerhouse school.”

Washington (25-11) fell into the losers’ bracket.

Warhawk starter Aaron Dott pitched all nine innings, allowing just one earned run. He did give up 10 hits and walked two batters, but he also struck out 12.

“We threw away a routine double-play ball in the first inning that allowed them to score,” Vodenlich said.

The Bears added another run in the third to take a 2-0 lead.

It stayed 2-0 until the bottom of the seventh inning.

Whitewater cut the lead in half when Travis Wessels scored all the way from first base on an error by Washington leftfielder Nick Vom Brack.

In the Warhawks’ winning ninth, Tony Wong reached on an error by shortstop Joe Wenzel to lead off.

Matt Millar sacrificed him to second. Cory Trepanier singled Wong to third, and Ryan Leavitt came in to run for Trepanier.

Wessels then fouled out for the second out of the inning.

The Washington catcher then made an ill-advised throw and tried to pick off Leavitt at first. The ball sailed down the right field line, and Wong scored.

Nick Rechlitz then hit a fly ball that was dropped by the center fielder, which allowed Leavitt to score the winning run.

WHITEWATER 3, WASHINGTON 2

Washington (ab-r-h-rbi)—Midkiff, 2b, 4-1-3-0; Lehmann, rf, 4-1-1-1; Vom Brack, lf, 4-0-1-0; Wenzel, ss, 3-0-0-0; G. Kennedy, cf, 4-0-2-1; Bayer, 1b, 4-0-2-0; Webb, c, 3-0-1-0; S. Kennedy, dh, 2-0-0-0; Rogalski, dh, 1-0-0-0; Davis, 3b, 4-0-0-0. Totals: 33-2-10-2.

Whitewater (ab-r-h-rbi)—Beyer, lef, 3-0-0-0; Petrasko, ph, 1-0-0-0; Cordio, lf, 0-0-0-0; Kuhlmann, 2b, 4-0-1-0; Coe, c, 4-0-0-0; Zalnis, rf, 4-0-1-0; Wong, cf, 4-1-0-0; Millar, dh, 3-0-2-0; Trepanier, 1b, 3-0-1-0; Leavitt, pr, 0-1-0-0; Wessels, ss, 4-1-2-0; Rechlitz, 3b, 4-0-1-0. Totals: 34-3-8-0.

Washington 101 000 000—2

Whitewater 000 000 102—3

E—Wessels, Vom Brack, Wenzel, G. Kennedy, Webb. LOB—Washington 8, Whitewater 7. DP—Washington 1, Whitewater 1. 2B—Zalnis, Millar. 3B—Lehmann. Sac—Millar. SB—Wenzel.

Washington IP H R ER BB SO

Williams (L, 8-3) 8.2 8 3 0 0 6

Whitewater

Dott (W, 6-5) 9 10 2 1 2 12