UW-Platteville 5, UW-La Crosse 4 (10 innings)

UW-La Crosse 6, UW-Platteville 1

La Crosse, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse baseball team split a WIAC doubleheader with UW-Platteville Wednesday afternoon at North Campus Field. The Pioneers won the opener, 5-4 in 10 innings, while the Eagles took the nightcap, 6-1. UW-L is now 14-17 overall and 6-10 in the WIAC while UW-Platteville is 19-14 overall and 9-11 in the conference.

In the nightcap, UW-L's Brandon Walczak (3-4) pitched a complete-game one-hitter in earning the 6-1 victory. He went 9.0 innings, allowing one hit, one run and four walks while striking out five. Wade Axelson had the only hit for UW-Platteville with a lead-off single in the top of the third inning.

The Eagles took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on Jay Fanta's RBI single to score Adam Cordova. UW-L tallied twice in the bottom of the second. Cordova had a single to knock in Ryan Steinhoff and Travis Martin scored on the play after a UW-Platteville throwing error.

Each team scored a run in the third. Tyler Jacobson had a sacrifice fly for the Pioneers to score Axelson while Lance Poppy had an RBI double for the Eagles to knock in Matt Trocke.

UW-L added two runs in the bottom of the eighth with Poppy scoring on a wild pitch and Matt Johnson having an RBI on a bunt single to score Steinhoff.

Johnson finished 3-for-4 in the nightcap with an RBI while Poppy was 2-for-4 with a run scored and RBI.

Bill Oppriecht (2-2) took the loss for UW-Platteville, going 7.1 innings, allowing nine hits, six runs (three earned) and two walks with five strikeouts.

Brett Benesh scored the winning run on a UW-L error in the top of the 10th for UW-Platteville in the first game. The Eagles stranded 16 runners on base in the opener, including three in the bottom of the ninth and two in the bottom of the 10th.

Benesh had a pair of two-out two-run doubles for the Pioneers in the third and fifth innings. The Eagles scored in the third on a Corey Geary ground out to knock in Cordova, who tripled. UW-L trailed 4-1 in the bottom of the fifth when Poppy hit a two-out two-run single to cut the lead to 4-3. Geary and Trocke scored on Poppy's single.

UW-L tied the game in the bottom of the ninth. Trocke singled to start the inning and stole second. He then scored on Fanta's single, but the Eagles left the bases loaded to end the inning after Johnson grounded out. 

Cordova singled to start the 10th for UW-L and was sacrificed to second by Geary. After Trocke flied out, Fanta was walked with two outs, but Brett Jacobson hit into a fielder's choice to end the game.

Tim Verthein (1-5) took the loss, going 4.0 innings, allowing three hits, one run and one walk with two strikeouts. Garrett Scray started for UW-L, pitching 6.0 innings, allowing eight hits, four runs and two walks with five strikeouts.

Cordova, Geary, Fanta, Poppy and Martin each had two hits for UW-L.

Wil Osmanski (6-1) earned the win, pitching 3.2 innings, allowing four hits, one run and two walks with a strikeout. Justin Crotty started for UW-Platteville, going 6.1 innings, allowing eight hits, three runs (two earned) and three walks with three strikeouts. Benesh finished 3-for-5 with four RBI and a run scored.

UW-L returns to action Thursday, April 29 against city-rival Viterbo University. The Eagles and V-Hawks start at 7:30 p.m. at Copeland Park in La Crosse.