May 20, 2007
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
Fairborn, Ohio- The UIC baseball team wrapped up the regular season with a road doubleheader split against Wright State at Nischwitz Stadium on Saturday.
UIC head coach Mike Dee picked up career win No. 300 in the opener as the Flames earned a decisive 14-5 victory.
Despite holding a 5-2 lead after seven and a half innings in the second game, the Flames, resting most of their starters, were unable to clinch a doubleheader sweep in a 6-5 loss to the Raiders.
After the two games between the Horizon League's top two teams, the regular-season champion Flames moved to 31-19 and 21-6 in Horizon League games, while the runner-up Raiders ran their record to 32-20 overall and 21-19 in conference play.
GAME 1: UIC 14, Wright State 5
Another outstanding outing from senior starting pitcher Zach Peterson and four multi-run innings guided UIC to a 14-5 victory over Wright State in the first game of the doubleheader.
The win gave UIC head coach Mike Dee his 300th career victory, all earned as the Flames' skipper.
Ty Rubio went a perfect 4-for-4 with a walk and four runs scored. Micky Pingree homered and drove in three runs, while Mike Kaffel went 3-for-5 at the dish.
Peterson allowed just one unearned run in six innings of work. The senior right-hander scattered six hits and fanned four during his outing, picking up his sixth straight decision in the process.
Rubio led off the third by crushing a ball to left center for a double. After Nick Rainwater grounded out to first and moved Rubio over 90 feet, Jake Carr singled up the middle to drive in the game's first run.
Pingree then went yard in the next at-bat when he walloped Garret Holleran's 0-1 offering over the left field wall for a two-run blast and a 3-0 UIC lead.
UIC posted another three-spot in its half of the fifth. Rubio and Rainwater led off with back-to-back singles and moved over a base on Carr's sacrifice bunt. Pingree singled to drive in Rubio, followed by Larry Gempp Jr.'s RBI groundout and Brett Schaefer's RBI single to right.
Wright State scratched the scoreboard with an unearned run in the bottom of the fifth. Sam Mote grounded out to drive in the run after Pingree dropped a fly ball in left center that allowed Raider runners to move to second and third. Peterson didn't let the error faze him, befuddling the final two hitters for two swinging strikeouts.
The Raiders made it interesting after Peterson exited the game, plating four runs on six hits in the seventh to cut their deficit to a single run.
But the Flames added to their lead in the eighth. Kaffel and Rubio hit consecutive RBI doubles to extend the UIC advantage to 8-5, and after Rubio stole third Carr drove him home on a sacrifice fly to right.
UIC then posted plenty of insurance in the ninth, batting around and posting five runs to prevent any Wright State comeback attempt.
GAME 2: Wright State 6, UIC 5
Starter Steve Crnkovich allowed just one run six innings of work, but the Flames could not hold a late three-run lead in a 6-5 loss to Wright State in the nightcap.
Jon Brown homered and drove in two runs in the Flames' final regular season contest of 2007.
Crnkovich fanned four Raiders and scatted seven hits for another solid showing, keeping his earned run average at a league-low 2.44.
Brown launched the first pitch he saw from Erich Schanz over the right field fence with one away in the opening inning for his first career home run, giving UIC an early 1-0 lead.
Wright State evened the score in its half of the first on Brian Shoup's two-out RBI triple.
UIC broke the tie in the next half-inning when Ryan Meehan and Ty Rubio drew back-to-back bases-loaded walks.
Rubio led off the fifth with a single to left center that was misplayed by left fielder Nick Mahon. The ball rolled all the way to the wall as Rubio advanced to third, where he would score from on Jake Carr's one-out single.
Wright State cut the Flames' lead down to two runs after Tyler Moore mishandled a two-out grounder off the bat of Casey McGrew that allowed Ross Oeder to score from third.
The Flames pushed their lead back to three when Brown grounded out with one away and the bases loaded to drive in a run.
But Wright State scored four times off of reliever Andrew Davis to take a 6-5 lead it would not relinquish.
UIC will host the 2007 Horizon League Baseball Championship next week. The tournament starts on Wednesday at Les Miller Field, but the Flames will play their first game on Thursday, May 24th at 7:00 p.m. UIC will take on the lowest winning seed from the opening round of games.
