NORMAL, Ill. – The second-seeded University of Southern baseball team bowed out of the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional with a 5-4 loss to Wayne State University Friday afternoon at the Corn Crib in Normal, Illinois. USI finishes the 2011 campaign 37-19.
The Screaming Eagles got out in front early with a 2-0 lead. USI freshman rightfielder Brad Wannemuehler (Evansville, Indiana) crossed the plate with the Eagles' first run on a RBI single by junior shortstop Brad Vance (Louisville, Kentucky) in the top of the third.
USI increased the margin to 2-0 in the top of the fourth with aid of an error by the WSU defense. Junior catcher Jarrod Rose (Mishawaka, Indiana) raced home from third when Wannemuehler reached on a throwing error by WSU second baseman Andrew Ciennik.
The Warriors pulled even with the Eagles, 2-2, in the fifth on first baseman Ryan Buter's two-run home run. WSU kept the momentum in the sixth when it took the 4-2 lead on one hit, a hit batter, and three walks in the sixth.
The Eagles bounced back in the top of the seventh with a two-run rally of their own that knotted the score, 4-4. Senior centerfielder Justin Blinn (Vincennes, Indiana) reached and advanced to second on a throwing error to lead off the inning, while junior third Ryan Kaczmarski (Mishawaka, Indiana) moved Blinn to third on a single and got into scoring position by stealing second base.
Vance drove in Blinn and Kaczmarski with a single through the left side for his second and third RBIs of the game. The junior shortstop finished the game two-for-five with three RBIs.
Wayne State pushed the deciding run across in the bottom of the eighth on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly by designated hitter Chris Gebra off of junior right-handed reliever Silas Dill (Bernie, Missouri).
USI senior right-hander Mark Walther (Kankakee, Illinois) took the loss in relief for the Eagles. Walther (0-2) allowed the one run on two hits and struck out one.
Senior right-handed Taylor Dennis started for the Eagles and went five-plus innings. Dennis allowed four runs on two hits and four walks. He also struck out four batters.
