After dropping three straight to start the season, the Wayne State College baseball team was able to secure win number one on the season.
One last time in Tucson, Arizona at Kino Stadium, the Wildcats played CSU Pueblo for a second time on Sunday.
Earlier in the weekend, CSU Pueblo won 10-9 on Friday in walk-off fashion in the ninth.
Sunday’s ballgame favored Wayne State College winning 7-6 in walk-off fashion thanks to bases loaded walk in the 10th. WSC is now 1-3 on the season.
After falling behind 2-0 in the top of the first inning, junior Braden Cannon scored on a wild pitch to pull within a run in the home half of the second inning.
Following a scoreless third, CSU Pueblo tacked on a run in the top of the fourth.
The Wildcats answered in the bottom of the fifth thanks to a senior Taylor Gill RBI ground out scoring senior Chase Douglas to pull back within a run at 3-2.
CSU Pueblo plated two more runs in the top of the seventh to lead at-most 5-2 as Wayne State College posted a three-un bottom of the seventh. Gill singled scoring Douglas, senoir Quinn McCafferty scored on a RBI sac fly from Cannon and Gill scored later in the inning thanks to a redshirt sophomore Noah Strizek single.
The game remained tied at 5-5 through the eight and ninth innings.
After CSU Pueblo scored a run in the top of the 10th, Wayne State College would score twice thanks to a Strizek single plating sophomore Brayden Chaney followed by McCafferty drawing a bases loaded walk scoring redshirt freshman Connor Hunt to win 10-9.
Wayne State College outhit CSU Pueblo 10-4 and recorded three errors compared to two errors by CSU Pueblo.
Strizek leads the Wildcats with four singles and drove in three runs while Douglas added two singles and two runs scored.
Gill singled, drove in two runs and scored; McCafferty and Cannon both singled, drove in a run and scored as redshirt junior Cam Madsen singled. Other runs were scored by Chaney and Hunt.
Senior Eli Crnkovich (12 pitches) was credited with the win in the final inning allowing one run while striking out one batter. redshirt freshman Wayne native and Nebraska transfer Brooks Kneifl (82) started the opening four innings allowing three runs (two earned), off three hits while striking out three batters, walking four and hitting one.
Senior Kadyn Van Hill (50) provided two and two-thirds of relief allowing two earned runs off one hit while striking out and walking two batters each. Sophomore Conlin Grady (21) worked an inning and two-thirds striking out three batters and hitting one. Senior Wayne native Jacob Kneifl (10) pitched two-thirds striking out one batter.
The Wayne State College baseball team will be off until Friday, Feb. 21 – Sunday, Feb. 23 during their conference opener against Minnesota Crookston. The four-game NSIC series will be played in Pueblo, Colorado.
