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University of Central Missouri
Ninth Inning Surge Earns Mavericks MIAA Championsh
May 10, 2009 | Baseball, General
Box Score
'09 South Central Regional Web Site
'09 South Central Regional Brackets-1
'09 South Central Regional Brackets-2
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – The UNO baseball team broke open a tie game with three runs in the top of the ninth inning to beat the Central Missouri Mules 12-9 and win the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Championship at Community America Ballpark. The Mavericks did not lose a game in the tournament and now advance to the NCAA Division II Regional playoffs where they will take on second-seeded Abilene Christian in first round action on Thursday, May 14 at 3:30 p.m. in Warrensburg, Mo.
UNO improves to 40-18 on the season. It's the third MIAA title won by the Mavericks this season, the first by a men's team. UNO indoor track and field and golf also have won league titles.
Central Missouri had tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, setting the stage for the Mavericks' heroics. #Andrew Hansen# hit a one-out double to left field. He then came home with the eventual championship-clinching run when #Evan Porter# singled up the middle to make it 10-9. #Drew Schwab# followed Porter with a home run to right field for the final tally.
Schwab was 5-for-6 with three RBI and two runs scored to lead the Mavericks. #Brett Koehn# also had three RBI while Porter had three hits and three runs scored.
The game featured the top two pitching staffs in the MIAA, but the Mavericks and Mules combined for 37 hits in the championship game. The Mavericks had a season-high 22. The game was the longest of the tournament at 3:13 and came just one day after the Mavs had beaten Missouri Southern in 1:38, the shortest game of the championship.
Central Missouri had a 1-0 lead after an inning, but UNO plated two in the third to take the lead. Hansen scored on a single by Schwab, and #Travis Jacobi# later singled in Porter to make it 2-1.
The Mules scored single runs in the third and fourth before the Mavericks erupted for five runs in the top of the fifth. Porter led off the inning with a home run over the left field fence. Strawn then knocked in Jacobi, who had singled earlier, with a single to left to put UNO back in front, 4-3.
Strawn's hit chased Central Missouri starter Ryan Romo after 11 hits and six runs, but Romo's replacement fared no better. Tom Latimore gave up a double to Koehn and two more runs scored. Koehn came home later on a sacrifice fly by #Jeremy Klein# to put UNO up 7-3 after five.
UNO made it 9-3 with two more in the sixth, one on a bases-loaded walk to Koehn and another on a single by #Brian Goliber#.
The Mules started their rally with a run in the bottom of the sixth and two more in the seventh. In the eighth, Stewart Hoover tied the game with one swing, a three-run shot off of reliever #Joe Holtmeyer#. Still, Holtmeyer managed to leave two later batters stranded to keep the game tied at nine.
In the ninth, Central Missouri ran out of dramatics, going down in order. Holtmeyer got credit for the win in two innings of work. He is now 7-4.
