May 16, 2015
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BOX SCORE
Coach Dee's Postgame Comments
2015 HL Tournament Bracket
CHICAGO -- With a 9-6 victory against Youngstown State (16-33, 9-21, HL) at home on Saturday afternoon, the UIC baseball team (28-20-1, 22-8 HL) won the 2015 Horizon League Regular Season Title and clinched the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament. This marks the 11th league crown for head coach Mike Dee and the Flames and the team's first since the 2011 season. UIC also tied a program record for most conference wins with 22 after sweeping the Penguins during the final week of regular season play.
UIC closed out the regular season on a seven-game winning streak that included six Horizon League contests. The Flames won nine of their ten conference series' this season and recorded three sweeps.
After the game, UIC baseball honored its eight seniors with an on-field presentation. Those eight seniors include Jeff Boehm, Alex Lee, Tyler Detmer, Zenon Kolakowski, Carl Sugihara Ryan Hinchley, Alex Posey and Brian Evak.
Boehm went yard for the 14th time this season in the third inning with a three-run blast that gave UIC the lead for good. He now moves in to sole possession of the No. 3 spot on UIC's single-season home run list. Boehm also increased his league-leading RBI total to 62, which ranks tied-for-third on the Flames' single-season leaderboard and top-10 in the nation. The Lansing, Ill. native needs just four more RBI to set the program record currently held by Bart Babineaux with 65. Boehm also wins the Horizon League Triple Crown award after leading the conference in homers (14, t-1), RBI (62) and batting average (.371)
Sophomore Mickey McDonald paced UIC at the dish by going 3-for-5 with a RBI. Lee and Boehm tallied two hits apiece as redshirt junior Conor Philbin connected on his first double of the season.
Junior Ian Lewandowski (5-4) picked up his fifth win of the season as he tossed eight innings, giving up three runs and scattering 10 hits.
UIC jumped on top 1-0 in the first inning after a single by McDonald plated Bohanek. The Penguins took a brief lead in the top of the third frame with two scores to go ahead 2-1.
That's when Boehm sent a moonshot over the right field fence to send in Detmer and Bohanek, giving UIC a 5-3 advantage.
The Flames scored lone runs in the fourth and fifth innings and then tacked on three insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh to go up 9-3.
The Penguins cut UIC's lead in half with a three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning, but Posey closed out the game on the mound for the Flames with two quick outs.
The Flames will commence tournament action on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT in Whiting, Ind., at Oil City Stadium. They will play the lowest remaining seed following day one action. For more information on tournament matchups please click on the above bracket link.