UW-L Splits WIAC Twinbill with UW-Stevens Point

For Immediate Release: Saturday, March 29, 2008

La Crosse, Wis. – The UW-La Crosse baseball team opened its 2008 WIAC schedule with a doubleheader split against UW-Stevens Point Saturday afternoon at North Campus Field. The Eagles won the opener, 9-6, before the Pointers came back to win the nightcap, 8-3. UW-L is now 8-6 on the season while UW-Stevens Point is 7-6.

The doubleheader was moved to UW-L due to poor field conditions at UW-Stevens Point. The Pointers were the home team in both games.

In the opener, UW-L scored twice in the top of the first on Mike Schmidt's two-run double scoring Darren O'Donnell and Storm Gram. UW-Stevens Point, ranked 26th in Collegiate Baseball Top-30, cut the lead to 2-1 in the second as Brad Frank hit a solo home run. The Eagles scored four runs in the top of third to lead 6-2. O'Donnell hit a two-run home run while Dusty Otto had a bases-loaded walk to drive in a run.

The Pointers scored four times in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit to 6-5. Jared Surman hit a three-run home run for UW-Stevens Point while Sam Spurney had a run-scoring double.

UW-L scored three times in the top of the fourth as Schmidt had an RBI double and Joey Casper a two-run single. UW-Stevens Point made it 9-6 in the fifth scoring an unearned run.

Ross Benitz (2-2) picked up the win, pitching 5.0 innings, allowing seven hits, six runs (five earned) and three walks while striking out four. Luke Zurbriggen went 3.0 innings for UW-L, allowing one hit and four walks with four strikeouts. Mike Brehm earned his second save of the season, pitching 1.0 inning.

Garrett Nix (2-2) suffered the loss for UW-Stevens Point, going 3.1 innings, allowing eight hits, nine runs (seven earned) and five walks while striking out two.

O'Donnell, Schmidt and Casper each had two hits for UW-L in the opener while Spurney collected two hits for UW-Stevens Point.

In the nightcap, UW-Stevens Point took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth as Surman scored on a wild pitch and Brandon Scheidler had a sacrifice fly scoring Frank. The Pointers made it 3-0 in the fifth as Surman had a sacrifice fly. UW-L cut the deficit to 3-2 in the sixth on O'Donnell's RBI single and Schmidt's sacrifice fly. The Pointers tallied five times in the seventh highlighted by Scheidler's two-run single. The Eagles' Josh Weber had a sacrifice fly in the ninth for the final scoring of the game.

Travis Kempf (2-0) picked up the win, going 5.1 innings, allowing one hit, two runs and four walks with two strikeouts. Mike Thrun went 2.2 innings, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out four.

Greg Gibson (2-1) took the loss, going 6.0 innings, allowing four hits, three runs and five walks.

Surman, Doug Coe and Spurney each had two hits for UW-Stevens Point while O'Donnell had two hits for UW-L.

UW-L returns to action Wednesday, April 2 in a twinbill at UW-Stevens Point at 1 p.m.