FAIRBORN, Ohio – In a wild Horizon League Tournament tilt that featured 28 combined runs and 30 total hits, the UIC Flames prevailed in their first game of the weekend with an 18-10 triumph over the No. 3 Milwaukee Panthers at Nischwitz Stadium on a sun-splashed Thursday afternoon.
Ryan Lin-Peistrup drove in a career-high six runs for UIC (27-21), while the top four hitters in the lineup combined for nine hits and 13 RBI.
Matt Bottcher returned to action for the first time since May 7 and he went 3-for-3 with a triple, three walks and three runs scored.
Sean Dee set an Horizon League Tournament record with five walks and he scored a game-high four runs for the Flames.
How It Happened
- Milwaukee, which scored 12 runs in a win on Wednesday, struck for a quick four runs in the top of the first against the Flames. The first three Panthers to bat hit safely with the third being a RBI double from Trevor Schwecke. The second run came in on a groundout to third base. UIC nearly escaped with only two runs allowed, but a throwing error with two outs allowed two more to score and expand the lead to four runs after a half-inning.
- Patience paid off for UIC in the bottom of the second. The Flames drew five walks against MKE's Alex McIntosh to plate a pair of runs and force an early pitching change. Ryan Lin-Peistrup stepped in to face the new arm and greeted the reliever with a double into left field that cleared that bases and put UIC in front, 5-4.
- The Flames added four more tallies in the bottom of the third. Matt Bottcher, playing for the first time since May 7, tripled to deep center field to score Chris Papapietro from first base. Bottcher scored with ease on Joshua Figueroa's single and the UIC catcher scored with the help of two wild pitches and a passed ball. Then Derrick Patrick launched an RBI double that hit halfway up the wall in center field, allowing Sean Dee to come home from first base and make it 9-4.
- The Panthers quickly retaliated with four runs in the top of the fourth, but All-Horizon League First Team selection Ryan Hampe pushed the lead back to two. The freshman helped the Flames reach double digits with a solo home run to left-center field, his third of the season.
- UIC posted another multi-run inning in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three times to take the lead back up to five at 13-8. Lin-Peistrup plated a run with a single through the middle before Scott Ota brought Patrick in from second base with a base hit to right field. Lin-Peistrup ended up on third on that play and scored on a sacrifice fly from Hampe.
- Milwaukee finally chased UIC starting pitcher Jacob Key in the top of the sixth inning. The Panthers hit three consecutive doubles to plate a pair of runs and prompt a pitching change for the Flames. Mark McCabe came on and retired the first two he faced to strand a runner on third base as the inning ended.
- In the bottom half UIC extended the cushion once again. Bottcher picked up a base hit up the middle to open the frame and he came all the way around to score when Thomas Smart split a gap for an RBI double. That run extended UIC's lead to 14-10.
- The Flames scored at least four runs in an inning for the fourth time in the bottom of the eighth. Lin-Peistrup hit a two-run single and Ota added a two-run double. Those knocks put UIC in front, 18-10.
Notable
- Eight different Flames drove in at least one run in the 18-run outburst, led by Ryan Lin-Peistrup's career-high six RBI. In the last two games, the sophomore has driven in 10 runs and scored five times.
- UIC has scored 38 runs in its last two games.
- The Flames have scored at least 10 runs in three of six games against Milwaukee this spring. UIC tallied a season-high 21 runs at Milwaukee on March 30. The Flames have outscored the Panthers this season, 65-30, in six games.
- Sean Dee walked five times and drove in a run as his first free pass came with the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning. The five walks are a Horizon League Tournament record.
- Scott Ota drove in three runs on Thursday and he moved within one of the program's all-time record. The senior now has 159 RBI, one shy of Frank Provenzano's UIC record.
- UIC's bullpen continued to be a boon for the Flames. Relievers Mark McCabe and Nick Oliff combined for 3.2 scoreless innings of relief to finish Thursday's win. The pair allowed only two baserunners among the 13 Panthers faced. The team's relief corps lowered its ERA to 2.37 in 148.1 innings of work this spring.
- In his last start against Milwaukee on May 3, Key allowed only two hits over 8.0 scoreless IP. On Thursday, the Panthers posted four runs on four hits in the first inning.
- UIC has won nine of 11 games in May, and seven of its last eight overall.
On Deck
- No. 2 UIC will take on top-seeded Wright State on Friday, May 24 at 11 a.m. CT.
- The Raiders won five-of-six matchups during the regular season and all three at Nischwitz Stadium.
- The game will air on ESPN+.
