The Peacock baseball team allowed just four runs in five of their six games this week, but while the pitchers and defense were holding their opponents in check, the UIU bats could not take advantage of their opportunities until game two on Sunday. After dropping a 4-1 decision in game one, the Peacocks jumped out to a 7-0 lead three innings into their series finale with Wayne State College and held on for the 7-4 win to salvage a split on Sunday. The split pushed UIU's record to 18-26 overall and 10-20 in the Northern Sun, while the Wildcats moved to 23-20 overall and 18-12 in the conference.
In the first game, the Wildcats scored three runs in the first inning off Peacock starter
Charley Cunningham thanks to three hits, a walk and a hit batsmen. Cunningham settled down after the rough first and held the home team off the scoreboard until the sixth inning when they scored their fourth run of the contest.
While Cunningham was holding WSC in check, the Peacock bats presented opportunities, but could never finish an inning with a run on the board. A UIU baserunner reached second in the first and second innings with just one out, but he was stranded there each time. In the fifth,
Colton Janssen singled with one out and moved to second when
Cody Booker walked. A fielding error on a
Jordan Kearns grounder allowed one run to come home and left two on with still only one out, but UIU was unable to bring any one else home.
Cunningham (4-3) suffered the loss after throwing all six innings and allowing the four runs on nine hits while striking out a pair of Wildcats.
Dylan McGill improved to 6-0 on the season after going the distance and holding the Peacocks to just two hits while striking out 11 batters in his seven innings.
Upper Iowa snapped a six-game losing streak for themselves and also broke WSC's seven-game winning streak with their 7-4 win in game two. The Peacocks wasted no time getting on the board with four runs on four hits in the first inning.
Alex George plated two runs with a single to left and moved to third when
Adam Budron doubled to the gap in left centerfield. Both George and Budron scored on an
Eric Cottrell double down the leftfield line.
The Peacocks added two more runs in the second with three straight hits.
Luis Ravelo led off with single through the left side and moved to third when
Mitch Moser doubled to left center.
Jacob Greco pushed both runners home with a double of his own giving UIU a 6-0 advantage.
Upper Iowa would add one more in the third on an rbi-triple to the wall in left center off the bat of Ravelo.
UIU starter
Garrison Becker did allow a pair of runs on three hits to the Wildcats in the third inning, but buckled down holding the home team scoreless in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. The Peacocks took their 7-2 lead into the seventh when a run came across on three hits and an Upper Iowa error cutting the margin to four runs. Head Coach
Mark Danker made the move to the bullpen and brought in senior
Matt Banks, who got out of the inning thanks to a ground ball double play to Ravelo at shortstop.
Banks surrendered one run in the bottom of the ninth on a homerun by John Roberts, but closed out the game with a flyball to centerfield to preserve the lead, 7-4.
Becker (1-3) won his first decision of the season with 6.1 innings of work allowing 3 runs on 11 hits while striking out 6 batters. Banks was on the hill for 2.2 innings and allowed just 1 run on 2 hits while striking out 3.
After being held down in game one, the Peacock bats came alive with 13 hits including five UIU players with at least two hits. Ravelo, Moser, Greco and Cottrell all had two hits in the game, while George tallied three hits.
Upper Iowa enters the final six days of the regular season this week with a double header at Winona State University on Wednesday, Apr. 29, and a four-game series in Fayette against Augustana College on Friday and Saturday, May 1-2, at Robertson Woods Field.
