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Pointers Win 10th
Straight Elimination Game
A day after he found himself on the
short end of a pitchers duel, Jordan Zimmermann used his bat to help spark
the UW-Stevens Point's offensive attack in a 12-3 victory over Aurora at Fox
Cities Stadium in Grand Chute at the NCAA Division III World Series.
Zimmermann highlighted a five-run fourth inning for the
Pointers as he hit the team's first home run of the World Series this year driving
a 1-0 fastball over the wall in left center field. Adam Evanoff started the
scoring with a run-scoring single through the left side of the infield
scoring Ryan Byrnes who led off the inning with a walk. After the Zimmermann
home run, Nat Richter reached on an fielder's choice driving in Tim
Schlosser.
"I got ahead in the count and was looking for a
fastball middle in," Zimmermann said. When asked what he preferred to do
more, pitch or hit, Zimmermann replied, "I like pitching better...but I like
hitting too."
Zimmermann also added a run-scoring single in the fifth
inning as he batted three-for-four on the afternoon while scoring three
times. With the victory, the Pointers have now won 10 straight games when
facing elimination this season.
UW-Stevens Point's offense cranked out 14 hits off of
five Aurora pitchers while scoring all 12 of its runs in the fourth, fifth,
and sixth innings. It marked the Pointers' second all-time victory in the
World Series as the team went 1-2 in its only other appearance in 1997,
beating Bridgewater State (Mass.) by an identical 12-3 count.
"I think for us in any game it's important to get an
early lead," said UW-Stevens Point head coach Pat Bloom. "We tend to get
into a little comfort zone when we get up early, and with a guy like Josh
(Perkins) on the mound, we are able to play the game at more of a relaxed
pace."
Perkins pitched a tough six innings to earn his
seventh victory of the year as the Pointers improved to 35-17. Perkins came
back to start the fourth inning after a 35 minute rain delay. He also had to
start throwing again in the bullpen after a long offensive fourth inning.
Perkins gave up one run on just four hits, scattering five walks and
striking out three.
"I felt better after the rain delay," Perkins said.
"The rain didn't bother me that much."
Coach Bloom appreciated the tough effort from Perkins
as well. "I know for any pitcher that's a tough thing to do to have to
sit that long, and he already had to sit through a long inning for us
offensively. But he is the type of pitcher that when a team tries to gain
momentum he's able to settle down, find his rhythm, and get tough outs in
those situations."
After the Zimmermann run-scoring single opened the
Pointers scoring in the fifth, Zimmermann stole second as Chuck Brehm stole
home to complete the perfectly executed double steal. Jake Frombach added a
two-run scoring single as the Pointers tallied six runs on four hits in the
frame.
Scholosser completed the Pointers scoring with his
second hit of the day, scoring Zimmermann with a base hit in the sixth.
Evanoff also had a two-hit day as five different players had a multi-hit game
for UW-Stevens Point.
Aurora scored a pair of runs in the ninth on a soft
liner to center by Jay Zimmerman. Tyler Lorenz pitched the final three
innings for UW-Stevens Point picking up his first save of the year. Lorenz
allowed two runs on three hits with a pair of strikeouts.
UW-Stevens Point will play
tomorrow at noon against the loser of Wheaton and Chapman.
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