Game 10 - May 29, 2005
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Grand Chute, Wisconsin - Wartburg College head coach Joel Holst said that his relief pitcher, Aaron Saeugling (pictured left), is not an average freshman. So when the Knights' opponents from Rowan University overcame a 6-2 deficit with four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning against Saeugling, there wasn't a lot of worry from Holst. Seven innings later, Holst definitely didn't have to worry anymore. Saeugling pitched eight-and-one-third innings of relief, and the Knights came away with an 8-6 victory over Rowan in 16 innings on Sunday evening at the NCAA Division III Baseball Championships at Fox Cities Stadium. It was the longest game in the 30-year history of the Division III championships (regionals and finals); breaking the previous mark of 14 innings (1992 and 2002). With the win, Wartburg (37-10) remained alive in the double-elimination tournament, and will face the State University of New York-Cortland (41-8-1) in an elimination game on Monday at noon. Rowan finishes its season at 42-10.
"He came in and was pitching well," said Holst of Saeugling, who relieved starter Charles Colvin with two outs in the eighth inning. "He was in the zone, and that's what we tell him to do, pound the strike zone. He did that and they (Rowan) just did their jobs. They came back, but there was nothing I saw out there that was wrong with Aaron. It was the same guy going out there; he just had a little rough luck and didn't get the save. "He's not a normal freshman. I think that he's a confident kid. And to put a freshman out there in that setting, in the College World Series, that says a lot right there. For him to do what he did here tonight was tremendous, a tremendous effort."
After the rough ninth inning, Saeugling settled in and was effective, striking out six batters in extra innings while allowing no walks and just two hits. "I was thinking about Charlie Colvin. He did a great job coming in. I didn't want to let him down," said Saeugling of his team's starter, who had pitched seven-and-two-thirds innings with three strikeouts and just seven hits allowed.
But Rowan reliever Brian McLaughlin was just as strong in extra frames, pitching eight innings of relief. He struck out four while allowing just three hits from the ninth inning to the 15th, before Wartburg claimed the game-ending rally in its half of the 16th inning. With two outs in the 16th inning, Joel Reynolds (pictured right) put the Knights ahead, smacking a double to deep center field to bring home Marc Numedahl, who had reached base on a fielder's choice. Both Reynolds and Numedahl tied an NCAA Division III playoff record for at-bats in a game, each recording eight at-bats.
"Whenever Joel gets up, everybody in the dugout is confident that he's going to come up big. More often than not, he comes through," said teammate Brian Greiner. "With a runner on second, the odds are in our favor that he's going to drive that guy in, and that definitely got us jacked up to go into the bottom of that inning and close it out." After Reynolds' go-ahead double - making him 5-for-8 on the evening -- Greiner provided the insurance run, plating Reynolds on a single to center to put the Knights ahead 8-6.
"Seeing him on second and knowing that we were up one -- and going into the bottom of the inning, being up two is a lot better feeling than being up one -- I was definitely making sure that I was going to give my best effort to drive that run in, and give us a two-run cushion in the bottom of the inning," Greiner said.
Saeugling then closed out the game for the Knights, as Rowan batters grounded out twice and flew out. "There's no quitters in that dugout," Holst said. "They fought hard all year and battled. That's what they did tonight. They just hung in there."
Rowan forced the long extra session with a dramatic comeback, scoring five runs in the final two innings of regulation to tie the game at 6-6. In the eighth, Frank Galeota reached base on a throwing error and eventually came home on a sacrifice fly by Jesse Pappler. In the ninth, Frank Hasenauer led off the inning with a single to left-center, and a double by Matt Johnson and walk loaded the bases with just one out. Matt Enuco (pictureed left) cleared the bases with a three-run triple to the right-center gap to cut the lead to 6-5, and a sacrifice fly by Michael Rucci plated Enuco to tie the game.
Wartburg grabbed a 4-0 advantage after the first three innings, and took advantage of a strong start by Colvin to hold the lead most of the way. Colvin struck out three while allowing seven hits and one walk in seven-and-two-thirds innings, and just one of the two runs against him was earned. "Charlie Colvin has been one of our most consistent pitchers all year," Holst said. "He just goes out and guts it out and does a tremendous job." A run-scoring double by Reynolds, bases-loaded walk and RBI single by Brandon Steinbrecher gave the Knights a 3-0 lead after the first inning. A double by Greiner plated Reynolds in the fourth to give Wartburg a 4-0 lead.
Rowan was limited to just two hits in the first four innings, before scoring its first run in the fifth inning. Hasenauer singled, stole second and scored on a single by Galeota.
Wartburg loaded the bases in the seventh inning on an error, fielder's choice and hit batter, and a single by Greiner plated Numedahl with the fifth run for the Knights. Brandon Steinbrecher crushed a home run down the left-field line to lead off the eighth inning, giving the Knights a 6-1 lead.
Rowan stayed in the game with its defense, which converted a championships-record six double plays, just the fourth time in NCAA Division III overall history (regular-season and playoffs) that the feat has been accomplished.
"Up until the eighth inning, I was pretty upset. We weren't playing even close to the way we can play," said Rowan coach John Cole. "(But after) that four run rally, the rest of the way, we played like warriors. There were no losers tonight. We've got to go home, but when your kids play that well, that's why you coach.
For Cole, the loss provided a bittersweet ending to a storied career with the Profs. After seven seasons and a 229-73 record at Rowan, Cole is leaving to take the head coaching position at the University of Pennsylvania, an NCAA Division I program, on July 1. "I told them (the players) to keep up the tradition of the program," Cole said. "It took us 25 years to get back here and we did it two years in a row. Now they have an obligation to try to keep it at a high level. It's difficult to get in here, and anything can happen in these tournaments. There's not much of a difference between a lot of these teams."
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Wartburg College 8 (37-10) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Aaron Port rf............ 7 1 4 0 0 0 5 0 0 Marc Numedahl 2b......... 8 2 0 0 0 1 1 6 0 Casey Pauli ss........... 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 5 1 Joel Reynolds 1b......... 8 3 5 2 0 0 18 0 0 Brian Greiner c.......... 6 1 3 3 1 0 10 0 0 Chris. Robertson 3b...... 5 0 1 0 3 1 2 4 4 Brandon Steinbrecher dh.. 6 1 1 2 1 3 0 0 1 Kyle Blacker lf.......... 6 0 3 1 1 1 4 0 2 Patrick Henderson cf..... 6 0 1 0 1 2 8 0 5 Charles Colvin p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Aaron Saeugling p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Totals................... 56 8 18 8 7 9 48 16 13 Rowan University 6 (42-10) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Frank Galeota 2b......... 6 2 1 1 1 0 3 4 0 Matt Enuco 3b............ 6 1 2 3 0 1 3 3 3 Michael Rucci c.......... 6 0 3 1 0 2 12 3 0 Jesse Pappler dh......... 4 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 Irv McFarland 1b......... 7 0 2 0 0 1 18 1 1 Bryan Ciconte cf......... 7 0 0 0 0 2 4 1 4 Frank Hasenauer rf....... 7 2 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 Jim Comprelli lf......... 7 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 Matt Johnson ss.......... 5 1 1 0 1 0 4 11 0 Tom McCullen p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tyler Dempsey p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Conrad Renner p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Gary Winkler p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Brian McLaughlin p...... 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 Totals................... 57 6 12 6 2 10 48 27 9 Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------------------- Wartburg College.... 301 000 110 000 000 2 - 8 18 1 Rowan University.... 000 010 014 000 000 0 - 6 12 3 ----------------------------------------------------- E - Numedahl; Galeota; Enuco 2. DP - Rowan 6. LOB - Wartburg 13; Rowan 9. 2B - Reynolds 2(18); Greiner(16); Enuco(8); Rucci(20); Johnson(13). 3B - Reynolds(2); Enuco(4). HR - Steinbrecher(7). HBP - Pauli 3; Greiner. SH - Port; Pauli; Enuco; Johnson. SF - Rucci; Pappler. SB - Hasenauer(6). CS - Reynolds; Blacker. Wartburg College IP H R ER BB SO AB BF ----------------------------------------------- Charles Colvin...... 7.2 7 2 1 1 3 29 32 Aaron Saeugling..... 8.1 5 4 4 1 7 28 31 Rowan University IP H R ER BB SO AB BF ----------------------------------------------- Tom McCullen........ 2.0 6 4 4 3 1 10 14 Tyler Dempsey....... 4.1 3 1 0 2 2 12 16 Conrad Renner....... 0.2 3 1 1 0 1 5 5 Gary Winkler........ 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 Brian McLaughlin.... 8.0 6 2 2 2 4 27 32 Win - Saeugling (3-3). Loss - McLaughlin (3-2). Save - None. WP - McCullen. HBP - by McCullen (Pauli); by Dempsey (Pauli); by McLaughlin (Pauli); by McLaughlin (Greiner). Umpires - HP: Andre Lanoue 1B: Tim Carey 2B: Bob Lynn 3B: Tim McIntyre Start: 6:04 pm Time: 3:30 Attendance: 1668 McCullen faced 2 batters in the 3rd. Renner faced 2 batters in the 8th.
Story | Boxscore | Play-by-Play
Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------------------- Wartburg College.... 301 000 110 000 000 2 - 8 18 1 Rowan University.... 000 010 014 000 000 0 - 6 12 3 ----------------------------------------------------- Wartburg College starters: 43/rf Port; 11/2b Numedahl; 2/ss Pauli; 18/1b Reynolds; 9/c Greiner; 28/3b Robertson; 21/dh Steinbrecher; 16/lf Blacker; 5/cf Henderson; 30/p Colvin; Rowan University starters: 3/2b Galeota; 18/3b Enuco; 9/c Rucci; 22/dh Pappler; 26/1b McFarland; 5/cf Ciconte; 2/rf Hasenauer; 7/lf Comprelli; 1/ss Johnson; 8/p McCullen; Wartburg College 1st - Port singled to shortstop. Numedahl grounded out to 3b; Port advanced to second. Pauli hit by pitch. Reynolds doubled to right center, RBI; Pauli advanced to third, out at home cf to 2b to c; Port scored. Reynolds advanced to third on a wild pitch. Greiner walked. Robertson walked; Greiner advanced to second. Steinbrecher walked, RBI; Robertson advanced to second; Greiner advanced to third; Reynolds scored. Blacker singled to shortstop, RBI; Steinbrecher advanced to second; Robertson advanced to third; Greiner scored. Henderson struck out swinging. 3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 3 LOB. Rowan University 1st - Galeota flied out to cf. Enuco doubled to right field. Rucci flied out to cf; Enuco advanced to third. Pappler flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Wartburg College 2nd - Port singled, bunt. Numedahl flied out to lf. Pauli hit into double play 1b to ss to 1b; Port out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 2nd - McFarland flied out to lf. Ciconte flied out to cf. Hasenauer grounded out to 1b unassisted. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 3rd - Reynolds singled to shortstop. Greiner doubled to left center, RBI; Reynolds scored. Dempsey to p for McCullen. Robertson walked. Steinbrecher lined into double play p to first base; Robertson out on the play. Blacker flied out to 1b. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Rowan University 3rd - Comprelli grounded out to ss. Johnson grounded out to ss. Galeota grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 4th - Henderson singled to center field. Port lined into double play 2b to first base; Henderson out on the play. Numedahl struck out looking. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 4th - Enuco lined out to 1b. Rucci singled to right field. Pappler reached on a fielder's choice; Rucci out at second ss to 2b. McFarland struck out looking. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Wartburg College 5th - Pauli flied out to cf. Reynolds singled to left field. Greiner flied out to cf. Reynolds out at second c to 2b, caught stealing. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 5th - Ciconte flied out to rf. Hasenauer singled to shortstop. Hasenauer stole second. Comprelli grounded out to 3b, bunt; Hasenauer advanced to third. Johnson walked. Galeota singled to right field, RBI; Johnson advanced to second; Hasenauer scored. Enuco flied out to rf. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Wartburg College 6th - Robertson grounded out to ss. Steinbrecher struck out looking. Blacker singled to right field. Blacker out at first p to 1b, picked off. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 6th - Rucci doubled to right field. Pappler flied out to rf. McFarland grounded out to 2b; Rucci advanced to third. Ciconte struck out swinging. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Wartburg College 7th - Henderson walked. Port reached on a fielding error by 2b, SAC; Henderson advanced to second. Numedahl reached on a fielder's choice, bunt; Port advanced to second; Henderson out at third c to 3b. Pauli hit by pitch; Numedahl advanced to second; Port advanced to third. Renner to p for Dempsey. Reynolds reached on a fielder's choice; Pauli advanced to second; Numedahl advanced to third; Port out at home 3b to c. Greiner singled to right field, RBI; Reynolds advanced to second; Pauli advanced to third; Numedahl scored, unearned. Robertson struck out looking. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 3 LOB. Rowan University 7th - Hasenauer grounded out to 2b. Comprelli struck out looking. Johnson flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 8th - Steinbrecher homered to right field, RBI. Blacker singled, bunt, advanced to second on an error by 3b. Winkler to p for Renner. Blacker out at third c to ss to 3b, caught stealing. Henderson struck out swinging. Port flied out to rf. 1 run, 2 hits, 1 error, 0 LOB. Rowan University 8th - Galeota reached on a throwing error by 2b. Enuco grounded out to 3b, SAC, bunt; Galeota advanced to second. Rucci singled to right field; Galeota advanced to third. Pappler flied out to lf, SF, RBI; Galeota scored, unearned. McFarland singled to right field; Rucci advanced to third. Saeugling to p for Colvin. Ciconte flied out to cf. 1 run, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Wartburg College 9th - McLaughlin to p for Winkler. Numedahl grounded out to ss. Pauli hit by pitch. Reynolds hit into double play 2b to ss to 1b; Pauli out on the play. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 9th - Hasenauer singled to left center. Comprelli struck out swinging. Johnson doubled to left field; Hasenauer advanced to third. Galeota walked. Enuco tripled, 3 RBI; Galeota scored; Johnson scored; Hasenauer scored. Rucci flied out to cf, SF, RBI; Enuco scored. Pappler grounded out to 3b. 4 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 10th - Greiner hit by pitch. Robertson fouled out to c, bunt. Steinbrecher struck out swinging. Blacker struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Rowan University 10th - McFarland flied out to 3b. Ciconte flied out to 3b. Hasenauer grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 11st - Henderson grounded out to ss. Port singled to shortstop. Numedahl reached on a fielder's choice; Port advanced to second on an error by 3b. Pauli hit into double play ss to 2b to 1b; Numedahl out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB. Rowan University 11st - Comprelli grounded out to 2b, bunt. Johnson flied out to cf. Galeota flied out to lf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 12nd - Reynolds tripled to right center. Greiner fouled out to 3b. Robertson intentionally walked. Steinbrecher hit into double play 2b to ss to 1b; Robertson out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Rowan University 12nd - Enuco struck out looking. Rucci struck out looking. McLaughlin to p for Pappler. / for McLaughlin. McLaughlin struck out swinging. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 13rd - Blacker flied out to rf. Henderson grounded out to ss. Port flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 13rd - McFarland grounded out to 1b unassisted. Ciconte struck out looking. Hasenauer grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Wartburg College 14th - Numedahl grounded out to ss. Pauli struck out swinging. Reynolds grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Rowan University 14th - Comprelli singled to second base. Johnson grounded out to p, SAC, bunt; Comprelli advanced to second. Galeota flied out to lf. Enuco flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Wartburg College 15th - Greiner lined out to cf. Robertson singled up the middle. Steinbrecher struck out swinging. Blacker walked; Robertson advanced to second. Henderson grounded out to p. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Rowan University 15th - Rucci struck out swinging. McLaughlin struck out swinging. McFarland singled to right center. Ciconte grounded out to 3b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Wartburg College 16th - Port singled to left field. Numedahl reached on a fielder's choice, bunt; Port out at second p to ss. Pauli grounded out to p, SAC, bunt; Numedahl advanced to second. Reynolds doubled to center field, RBI; Numedahl scored. Greiner singled, advanced to second on the throw, RBI; Reynolds scored. Robertson grounded out to 3b. 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Rowan University 16th - Hasenauer grounded out to ss. Comprelli grounded out to 2b. Johnson flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
Updated June 2005