The Peacock baseball team split the final doubleheader of the 2016 season against the Wayne State Wildcats on Senior Day at Robertson Woods Field on Saturday afternoon. UIU matched its game one victory from the day before with a 10-4 win in game one. Upper Iowa looked poised for a game two win but the Wildcats rallied with an 11-run eighth inning and won 15-5.
After the split, the Peacocks finished the season 18-29 overall and 14-22 in the Northern Sun Conference. Wayne State wrapped up the year at 15-28 with a 12-16 mark in conference play.
Upper Iowa's bats came alive early in game one and jumped out in front in game one with four runs in the first, two in the second and four more in the third. The four runs in the first were highlighted by senior Jake Stenberg's two-RBI triple to right that plated juniors Alex George and Colton Janssen. Janssen reached on a single to right center, marking his 16th consecutive at-bat in which he reached base dating back to game two against Winona State on Wednesday.
In the second, UIU started the inning with three straight hits. Junior Luis Ravelo singled to right and stole second before coming around to score on senior Cody Booker's RBI single to center. With junior Anthony Calton batting, Booker swiped second base and scored when Calton roped a double to left center.
After a the Wildcats put up a two-spot in the top of the third, the Peacocks kept the bats going by loading the bases with two outs. Calton drew a walk to score the first run of the inning. Sophomore Jake Greco cleared the bases with Upper Iowa's second triple in three innings to put UIU up 10-2.
Senior Pitcher Brandon Nicholson (2-3) kept the Wildcats at bay, allowing three runs (two earned) on just four hits over six innings. The Brisbane, Australia native struck out five and walked five as he picked up his second win of the year. Freshman Zachary Cain came on in relief for the final inning and allowed a run on two hits before shutting the door on Wayne State.
In game two, the Peacocks gave up a pair of runs in the top of the first, but responded with three runs in the bottom half of the inning. George capped the inning with a two-run opposite field home run, his fourth of the year.
Wayne State tied the game at 3-3 with a run in the top of the fourth, only to have Upper Iowa respond once again in the bottom of the fifth. UIU started the inning when Stenberg reached on an error and senior Josh Ackerman-Blake singled to left. Fellow senior Jordan Kearns found a hole in the left side of the infield that plated a run that gave the Peacocks a 4-3 lead. Two batters later, Booker reached on a fielder's choice that brought Ackerman-Blake home to extend the UIU lead to two, 5-3.
In the eighth inning, however, Wayne State brought 15 batters to the plate and scored 11 runs on nine hits and a couple Peacock errors to take a 15-5 lead.
Sophomore Tanner Poor was strong in his final start of the year, throwing six innings of three run baseball. Poor scattered five hits and seven walks, while striking out four. Freshman Ethan Eckelberg came on in relief and allowed two runs on five hits in an inning of work. Sophomore Tyus Adkins took the loss after he allowed seven runs on six hits.
