DAYTON, Ohio – The Northern Kentucky baseball program's historic season rolls on as the Norse advanced to the Horizon League Championship round for the first time in program history with a 10-6 win over rival Wright State on Friday afternoon at Nischwitz Stadium.
Northern Kentucky will now be looking for its first conference championship in the NCAA Division I era to go with the school's first trip to the NCAA Tournament in program history with a single win on Saturday. The Norse enter the championship round undefeated at 2-0 in the double-elimination tourney.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Northern Kentucky – 10, Wright State – 6 (9 innings)
LOCATION: Nischwitz Stadium – Dayton, Ohio
RECORDS: NKU 34-22 (19-11 HL), WSU 19-35 (13-17 HL)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The Norse have posted back-to-back stellar outings by their starters to open the tournament. Today was
Tanner Gillis's turn as he collected his eighth win of the season. He went 8.2 innings and notched 11 strikeouts to just seven hits against.
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Treyvin Moss picked the right day to have a career outing as he went a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with one home run, one triple, five RBI, two runs scored, three walks and a stolen base. The five RBI were not only a game-high but were also a career-best for the Fort Wayne, Indiana native.
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Brennan Rowe was next on the Norse with two RBI off a 1-for-6 outing.
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John Odom was also near impossible to get out with a 3-for-4 effort. He came around to score twice in the victory.
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Cleary Simpson (2-for-6, one RBI, two runs),
Liam McFadden-Ackman (2-for-6, one RBI, one run scored) and
Logen Devenport (1-for-4, one RBI, one swipe) finished with a RBI apiece, respectively.
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Tyler Shaneyfelt (1-for-3, three bases on balls, one run scored),
Mitch Wood (1-for-3, one run) and
Jake Paulick (1-for-4, one run, one walk) all came around to score once in the victory.
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Aaron Massie closed out the game, his fifth save of the year, as he got the final out of the contest.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- It was all Northern Kentucky out of the gate as the Norse dropped two runs in the top of the first, second and third. Both Moss and McFadden-Ackman drove in runs in the opening frame, Simpson and Moss (again) followed them up with one RBI apiece in the second and Rowe drove in two with a single in the third to give the Norse a 6-0 advantage.
- Wright State was next to strike with a single run in the bottom of the sixth to make it a 6-1 game.
- Northern Kentucky responded right back with a huge, four-run top of the seventh. A Moss three-run blast was followed by a one RBI knock by Devenport to give the Norse some more breathing room at 10-1.
- The Raiders went on a spirited comeback attempt with a five-run bottom of the ninth, but Massie came in and slammed the door to send the Norse to the title game.
NEXT UP
The Norse will advance to the Horizon League Championship for the first time in their NCAA Division I history as they take to the field on Saturday, May 25 at 12 PM ET inside Nischwitz Stadium. If Northern Kentucky wins its opening game tomorrow, the Norse will capture the Horizon title for the first time in school history. If NKU was to drop the first contest, a winner-take-all showdown would follow at 4 PM ET.
All action will be played in front of a national audience on ESPN+.
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