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Panthers notch 42 runs in three games against Butler
Win first conference series 2-1
By Mike Kennedy
It was a slug fest in every sense of the statement as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee earned its first conference win on Friday, followed by a split in a double-header on Saturday against Butler University.
With 42 total runs in the three games, the Panthers(5-16, 2-4 Horizon) used hitting and not so much pitching, allowing the Bulldogs (5-14, 3-3 Horizon) to cross the plate 36 times, to get the job done.
In the first game of the three game series the Panthers took a few innings to get going, but starter Brad Lusti helped them out by going seven innings, allowing 11 hits and only three earned runs while striking out six.
It was a tie ball game through three, 1-1, but the fourth inning was just the beginning of the hitting fest that would last the entire three games for Milwaukee.
In the top of the fourth inning, designated hitter Ben Long hit a three-run home run to left field to take a 4-1 lead.
Lusti allowed one run in each of the third through sixth innings, but the Panthers responded to every attempt at a comeback. Five straight hits in the fifth inning allowed UWM to add another four runs to their 8-2 lead, and another two runs in the sixth extended the Bulldog’s deficit to six, 10-4.
The seventh inning was another big inning for the Panthers, starting out with Nick Wischer’s solo home run to left field and ending with five total runs in the inning. Butler came back in the eighth inning with six runs of their own, but it was too little too late as the Panthers took home their first conference victory, 20-10.
A double-header was set for Saturday and the Panthers needed one win to earn their first conference win of the 2008 season. A disappointing loss in the first game, 22-10, left the Panthers with some work to do in the second game in order to pick up the series win.
It was Shaun Wegner who stepped up for the Panthers in the second game of the double-header. Wegner came through with three doubles and a home run, knocking in four runs while crossing the plate twice himself.
It was pitching that would hold the Panthers in place to earn their first series win. Andy Hetebrueg started on the mound for Milwaukee, going seven innings allowing just four hits and four runs while striking out seven for his first win of the season.
After seven innings it was a 10-4 Milwaukee lead, but the Panthers didn’t want to see the series win diminish. Troy Vesling scored on an error by the Bulldogs and Wegner doubled, allowing Shawn Wozniak to score, giving Milwaukee an eight point cushion with two innings left.
With middle reliever Tim Hoy getting three quick outs in the eighth inning, it was up to closer Matt Holzheuter to end the series. Holzheuter faced just five batters in the ninth, striking out two and allowing only two hits to deflate the Butler comeback.
Milwaukee will travel to Northern Illinois for a game on Wednesday before a three game series at Southern Illinois starting Friday, April 4.
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