Brad Bohlen
Chloe Smith
5
Milwaukee UWM 22-32
11
Winner Northern Kentucky NKU 25-31
Milwaukee UWM
22-32
5
Final
11
Northern Kentucky NKU
25-31
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Milwaukee UWM 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 5 7 2
Northern Kentucky NKU 0 0 3 0 2 2 4 0 X 11 17 0

W: Ross, Cameron (6-2) L: PETERS, Jay (8-2)

Game Recap: Baseball |

High-hitting offense paves way for @NKUNorseBSB first-round victory

CHICAGO – Northern Kentucky baseball won its first-ever Division I postseason game on Wednesday, advancing in the Horizon League Championship with an 11-5 win over Milwaukee. NKU moves on to 25-31 overall, while the Panthers end their season at 22-32.
 
At the Plate
  • The Norse clubbed 17 hits, out-hitting Milwaukee by 10.
  • Both TJ Alas and Brad Bohlen went 4-for-5 for their second quadruple-hitters of the season. The last time a Norse had four hits was when Trey Ganns recorded as many against Valparaiso on April 21. Alas also scored three runs and drove in two, while Bohlen added a pair of RBI and a run.
On the Mound
  • Jean-Francois Dionne made his 11th start of the season, pitching three complete innings for the Norse. The senior struck out two batters and walked one, allowing three runs on four hits.
  • Jordan Menfee took over in the fourth, tossing 2.2 innings with just one hit allowed and recorded a pair of strikeouts.
  • Cameron Ross made his 35th appearance of the season, taking over the mound in the sixth and pitching the final 3.1 innings. Ross surrendered two hits and struck out a trio of batters while walking three. The sophomore was awarded the win and moved to 6-2 on the season.
Key Moments
  • Milwaukee plated the first run of the game off a suicide squeeze in the second inning before a pair of RBI singles quickly gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead.
  • NKU painted the bases gold in the third before Roberts drove Alas in off a single to center field. The Norse were able to equalize the score off a sac fly from Mercurio and a single to right field by Bohlen to send Will Haueter and Roberts across the plate.
  • Mercurio and Bohlen added an RBI apiece to their stat lines in the fifth to give NKU its first lead of the game, including Bohlen's second two-out RBI of the contest.
  • The Panthers' patience paid off in the sixth as Milwaukee drew five walks, two of which were on a bases-loaded situation to tie it up at 5-5.
  • NKU took the lead back in the bottom of the frame, with Alas and Roberts both recording RBI singles for the 7-5 lead.
  • The Norse put the game out of reach in the seventh, going up 11-5 with RBI singles from Richmond, Alas and Roberts and held the Panthers scoreless for the final three frames.
Norse Notes
  • The win marks the first victory in Division-I postseason history for NKU.
  • Alas extended his hitting streak to 17 games and has reached base in the past 47 contests.
  • With his runs scored in the sixth and seventh, Richmond recorded his 54th of the season and surpassed Justin Rahschulte (2002) for the 10th-most runs scored in a single season. He is the only Division I-era player to appear in the top-10.
  • NKU recorded at least 15 hits for the eighth time this season. Last year, NKU hit the 15-hit threshold just four times. The last time the Norse clubbed 15 hits was on May 18 at Oakland.
 
Up Next
  • NKU moves on to the double-elimination portion of the bracket and will play No. 2-seed Wright State tomorrow, May 25 at 3 p.m. CT/4 p.m. ET. The winner will move on to play the winner of the No. 1 UIC vs. No. 5 Oakland game on Friday at noon, while the loser of each game will remain at Granderson Stadium and fight to stay in the tournament with a 7 p.m. CT first pitch.  ESPN3 will carry the broadcast, which can be streamed live on computers, tablets and smart phones through WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
 
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