No. 1 Wright State prevails over No. 2 UIC in thrilling, back-and-forth bout to claim #HLBase Championship
Lance Rinker
CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET | BOX SCORE
DAYTON, Ohio — No. 1 Wright State recovered from an inspired UIC comeback on Saturday to claim the program's third #HLBase Championship in the last four years.
The championship marked the seventh Horizon League title for Wright State baseball and will mark its sixth trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2006.
The Raiders (39-15) put together a double, two singles and a sacrifice fly to plate five runs in the bottom of the first to take an early lead, but the Flames (30-18) seized upon opportunities to score one in the third and seven in the fourth for an 8-5 lead to chase WSU starter Derek Hendrixson. Wright State chipped away with one in the sixth, three more in the seventh and a security run in the eighth to seal the comeback 11-9. It marked a WSU record six straight games scoring in double digits.
The Flames (30-18) surrendered five runs in the first bottom of the first inning to fall into an early hole.
Wright State's Peyton Burdick, Player of the Year Gabe Snyder, Chase Slone, Bentley Jones, and Zach Weatherford each recorded hits in the innings for the Raiders; however, UIC bounced back just a few innings later.
UIC's offense sprang to life in the top of third. Designated hitter Thomas Smart walked to leadoff the frame and he eventually scored on a sacrifice fly from Derrick Patrick.
The Flames improved upon the one-run third inning and scored seven times in the top of the fourth. Aaron Ackerman, an All-Tournament selection, knocked in a run on an RBI double. Smart hit a two-run home run and two more scored on bases-loaded walks to give the Flames an 8-5 lead.
Zane Harris drove in Burdick with an RBI single up the middle in the bottom half of the fourth, cutting the Raiders' deficit to 8-6.
Seth Gray provided an RBI single for Wright State in the bottom of the sixth, drawing the Raiders to within one run at 8-7. However, UIC responded quickly, with Ackerman belting a leadoff solo home run to right field to open the seventh inning.
Trailing, 9-7, the Raiders responded with four unanswered runs to close the game.
Peyton Burdick's home run in the bottom of the seventh capped the comeback win and put the Raiders up 10-9. Burdick ended the game with three hits, two RBI, and three runs scored as he was named the MVP of the tournament. Snyder had four hits and an RBI as Weatherford led the way with three RBI on four hits, including a double and a home run.
Jeremy Randolph settled the Flames bats with 3.2 innings to pick up his fifth win of the season while Ryan Weiss came out of the bullpen to secure his first save of the year after throwing four innings in the tournament opener.
The Raiders will learn their NCAA Regional opponent during the NCAA Selection Show on Monday at noon on ESPNU.
WSURaiders.com | UICFlames.com
All-Tournament Team:
Jared Reklaitis, Milwaukee
Jake Lee, Oakland
Aaron Ackerman, UIC
Matt Bottcher, UIC
Ryan Campbell, UIC
Peyton Burdick (MVP), Wright State
Seth Gray, Wright State
Bentley Jones, Wright State
JD Orr, Wright State
Caleb Sampen, Wright State
Chase Slone, Wright State
Ryan Weiss, Wright State