UWO-Baseball final

The UW-Oshkosh baseball team won its first game in a doubleheader against the Marian Sabres at Tiedemann field on April 3.

The Titans jumped off to a quick start with a 3-0 lead over Marian after the first inning. The Sabres answered back in the third after senior Kurt Miller hit a monster three-run homer. Marian widened the gap, and the score was 7-3 after the fifth.

Although Oshkosh was down, the team rallied from deficits in the fifth, seventh and eighth. The players could be heard shouting words of encouragement to their teammates from the dug-out.

A turning point occurred in the sixth when senior Jeremy Jirschele hit a three-run homerun to bring the Titans within one run of the Sabres at 8-7. However, Marian regained control in the seventh. Oshkosh was able to nearly tie the game when junior Tyler Schmitt hit the ball down the foul line bringing in junior Josh Schere. Marian fans were outraged with the umpire and felt the ball should have been called foul. They shouted from their seats with anger.

The Titans capped off their comeback in the eighth with a dramatic two out three-run homer by senior pinch-hitter Scott Bolcoa, a transfer student from California. Oshkosh held off any comeback attempts from the Sabres, holding them scoreless in the ninth. The final score was 13-11.

The fans cheered from the stands after the win. There were 250 people in attendance on the warm and sunny afternoon.

UW-Oshkosh student Lindsey Robinson said, “It was a beautiful day for a ball game, and the Titans won which makes it even better.”

Junior Brian Gerl, the last of five Oshkosh pitchers, picked up the pitching victory for the Titans. Marian’s senior starter, Jason Bunton, pitched a good game for the Sabers before being replaced by freshman Dan Wolter who was credited with the loss.

UW-Oshkosh student Nicholas Propson said, “It looked like the Titans were having some trouble until Marian’s pitcher [Bunton] got tired.”

Oshkosh went on to take the second game of the doubleheader with a score of
11-1. The team currently holds the number nine ranking among NCAA Division III schools. The Titans’ next game is against Cardinal Stritch University at home on April 6.