PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville baseball team (15-15, 10-12 WIAC) split a Saturday afternoon doubleheader with UW-Eau Claire (7-25, 1-21 WIAC), taking game one 6-4 before falling 9-8 in game two from Kendall Murray Field.

Game One

After the Blugolds scored one in the top of the first inning, the Pioneers tied the game on an RBI single up the middle by freshman Anthony Massa. In the second, sophomore Caleb Parker put UW-Platteville in front with an RBI single, but UW-Eau Claire tied the game in the top of the third with a run-scoring single.

Junior Spencer Robertson broke the tie with a two-run home run down the left field line in the fourth inning, and the following inning, junior Sam Meidenbauer ripped an RBI double that scored Massa to push the lead to 5-2.

UW-Eau Claire cut away at the lead with two runs in the seventh, but senior Brady Katterhagen gave the Pioneers a two-run cushion with a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh. Senior Josh Belgrave shut down the Blugolds offense over the ensuing two innings to secure the save in the Pioneers 6-4 game one win.

Senior Jake Wegner picked up the win, going seven innings and allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits. He struck out six batters and walked four.

Parker paced the team with four hits in the game, while Massa, Katterhagen, and senior Slate Higa each added two hits. UW-Platteville recorded 14 hits as a team in the contest.

Game Two

Sophomore Connor Gresens put the Pioneers on the board first in game two, connecting on a two-run home run that scored senior Justin Fago. UW-Platteville tacked on another run in the third on an RBI single by Fago.

The Blugolds pulled ahead with a four-run fourth inning, but Robertson hit his second home run of the day in the bottom of the inning to knot the game at four apiece. Fago put the Pioneers ahead again on a sacrifice fly in the fifth, making it 5-4.

UW-Eau Claire responded with two runs in the sixth and three in the seventh to move in front 9-5. Meidenbauer cut the deficit to three with an RBI double in the seventh and later made it a one-run game with a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Gresens singled to put the tying run on base, but the Blugolds got the final out to hang on by a score of 9-8.

Senior Conner Paulson was charged with the loss after giving up a pair of runs in the sixth inning. Sophomore Wyatt Fischer threw the final 2.1 innings in relief, holding the Blugolds to no runs while striking out four.

The Pioneers finished with 11 hits in the game, led by a 3-for-5 performance from Fago. Massa, Meidenbauer, and Gresens also had multi-hit games in the loss.

Up Next

The Pioneers will wrap up the final two games of the weekend series with UW-Eau Claire tomorrow. The opening game of the annual Marc Heidorf Memorial Game begins at noon.