STEVENS POINT, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau baseball team was back on the road on Saturday as they began their season series with Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) opponent, UW-Stevens Point. As the Blugolds and Pointers squared off at University Field in Stevens Point, both teams traded runs throughout the doubleheader as UWEC fell in both contests, 5-2 and 10-5.
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
Ryan Venne (So. – Eau Claire, WI/North) started things off strong for the Blugolds as he hit a leadoff homer over the left field fence forr a 1-0 Blugold lead. Venne led UWEC offense at the plate with two hits and two RBIs in game one. Nate Witte (So. – Woodbury, MN/East Ridge) followed Venne's opening tally with his first of two singles to keep the Blugolds rolling early. The Pointers kept UWEC at bay for the next six innings as they gained a 5-1 lead after the sixth inning. Venne's second RBI of the game came on a single down the right field line to score Drew Salyers (Fr. – Centennial, CO/Arapahoe) from second base to cut the deficit to just three runs. Venne made the extra effort to grab the extra base on the hit but was thrown out by the right fielder to end the inning. Charlie Griffin (Jr. – River Falls, WI) went five and one third innings and allowed only seven hits and four runs.
Game two started in Eau Claire's favor once again as Andrew Murphy (Fr. – Mahtomedi, MN) hit an RBI single with the bases loaded to bring Ryan Venne across the plate for a 1-0 lead. The next batter, Joe Clinton (Fr. – Aurora, CO/Cherokee Trail), extended the UWEC lead to 2-0 with a sacrifice fly to right field that drove in Nate Witte from third. Murphy led the Blugolds at the plate in game two with three hits on four plate appearances and one RBI.
After UWSP tied the ballgame with a pair of runs in the first and fourth innings, the Blugolds regained their momentum with a 3-2 advantage in the sixth. Scott Richards (So. – Orland Park, IL/Carl Sandberg) hit a single up the middle with two outs in the sixth to score Diego Caideo (Sr. – Pompano Beach, FL/Northeast) from third. The one run lead was short lived as the Pointers rattled off eight runs in the seventh and eighth innings for Eau Claire's first deficit of the game. In the ninth, UWEC battled back hard with a Nate Witte sacrifice fly to center and a Ryan Venne tally on a wild pitch to bring the Blugolds within five, but the momentum was shutdown during the next at bat with the game's final out. Nico Smith (Fr. – Chicago, IL/Taft) pitched also pitched five and one third innings, giving up only five hits, two runs, and striking out two Pointers.
The Blugolds (7-19, WIAC 2-14) are back in Stevens Point on Sunday, April 24th for another doubleheader against UWSP. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 12PM.
Follow the Blugolds all season long at Blugold Game Day or on our app, UWEC Blugolds.
