CARDIAC CATS WIN AGAIN - TAKES GAME 1 IN EXTRAS

CARDIAC CATS WIN AGAIN - TAKES GAME 1 IN EXTRAS

Topeka, KS - Wow. The Bearcats baseball team lived up to its billing giving the great Bearcat fans who traveled with the team figurative heart attacks throughout the 4-hour marathon win over Washburn University in extra innings by the score 12-10. The game featured sloppy defense, a ton of walks, clutch hitting, lead changes, the Washburn Head Coach getting tossed for repeated swearing (PA probably should have thrown on some music), extra innings, and both teams scratching and clawing to score runs to win the game. Kudos goes to both the Ichabods and Bearcats who battled each other in what can only be described as a boxing match where the two traded hay-makers like Rocky and Apollo Creed in Rocky II. It was a gorgeous day in Topeka, Kansas, for the game with a high temperature of 65 degrees and sunny. There were 422 fans in attendance at the game. Oh boy, was it a game.

One of the many story lines in Game 1 was the Bearcats offense carried the day for the pitching and defense. The Bearcats' pitching and defense are going to be Northwest's calling card all season but the significance of the Offense shining today cannot be understated. Washburn was pre-season ranked #6 by MIAA coaches and the Northwest offense pummeled 12 runs (10 in regulation 9 innings) and 15 hits off of the Washburn's Thursday starter and bullpen.

In Game 1, Washburn took the early lead by scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning. Northwest counter-punched with 3 runs in the top of the 3rd. Washburn countered-back by scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 3rd to take a 4-3 lead. In the 5th inning, Northwest scored 1 run to tie the game 4-4 but Washburn countered with 3 runs in the bottom of the 5th to take a 7-4 lead. Northwest scratched in 1 run in the top of the 6th inning to trim the deficit to 7-5 only to have Washburn counter with a run of its own in the bottom of the same frame to keep maintain its lead to 3 runs, the score 8-5. In the 7th, Northwest took Washburn to the ropes and scored 5 runs to take the lead, 10-8. Washburn countered again and scored 1 run in the bottom of the 7th to trim the Bearcat lead to 10-9. Washburn would then land another shot against Northwest to tie the game 10-10 in the bottom of the 8th inning. After neither team scored in the 9th inning, the game went into extra innings. The bottom of the 10th was the pivotal moment in this game:

Washburn had Northwest on the ropes in the bottom of the 10th inning. With Carson Smith pitching for Northwest in essentially his 3rd frame, Washburn's Soicher walked to start the inning to put a runner on first base. Carson struck out the next Washburn batter for the 1st out. The WU runner was still on first. Carson then hits Washburn's Gibson with a pitch to put runners on first and second with 1 out. Carson then hits Washburn's Carnahan with a pitch to load the bases with 1 out. You could cut the Bearcat tension with a knife, but remember these are the Cardiac Cats and the Cardiac Cats never say die. With the Bearcat defense drawn in for a play at the plate, Carson strikes out the next Washburn batter for the 2nd out. Bases still loaded and the game still tied, 10-10. The next Washburn batter then hits a grounder to Short Stop Nick Gotta who cleanly fielded the ball and flipped it over to Ozzie Adams covering second base for the force-out 3rd out to get out of the inning having stranded 3 Washburn runners. Oh baby, what a performance.

Northwest scored 2 runs in the top of the 11th. Carson Smith came back into the game to close it out. And, as you would expect from Rocky and Apollo Creed, a dramatic finish ensued. Carson got the first batter to ground out in a nifty play by the pitcher, flip to first, for out number 1. Washburn's Jones singled to right field to put a runner on first base with 1 out. Washburn's Jones then advanced to second on a wild pitch, still with only 1 out. Carson struck-out the next Washburn batter for the 2nd out, runner on second base. The nervous energy was all over the Bearcat fans in the stands with several pacing while cheering on Carson and the Bearcats to get that 3rd and final out. Carson walked Washburn's Soicher to put runners on 1st and 2nd with 2 outs in the bottom of the 11th. The winning run came up to the plate. The count goes to a hitter's friendly 3 balls, 1 strike, count. The entire stadium is all sorts of anxious with the fans cheering on their teams, both dugouts yelling to support their guy, what an epic moment. With a 3-1 count, Carson gets a ground ball to Ozzie Adams who cleanly fields it and flips to first in time for the 3rd and final out. In a tribute to the hustle by Washburn, the Ichabod batter that made the 3rd out busted his butt down the line and got to within a step and half of the base in what I would describe as a routine defensive play. Stay tuned, this series is going to be epic.

Bearcats win, 12-10, in a game that took 4 hours and 7 minutes to complete, with all the drama and passion that you love about college sports and MIAA baseball. For his efforts, Carson Smith picked-up his 2nd win in 2016 to move his record to 2-1.

Offense - Although there were several offensive MVPS for Northwest in Game 1, Kolby Greenslade had the stellar performance for Northwest. Kolby Greenslade went 4 for 6 (including a double) with 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored in the game. Garrett Fort is the emotional spark-plug for Northwest on the field, in the dugout, and with the bat. In total, Garrett went 2 for 5 with 1 RBI, 1 run scored, and 2 walks in the game. Jake Lewis went 2 for 4 (including a double) with 2 RBIs and 1 run scored while playing 1st base. Derek Meyer went 3 for 3 (including a double) with 1 run scored while playing catcher in the game. Ozzie Adams went 1 for 4 with 1 RBI, 1 run scored, and 3 walks in the game. Nick Gotta went 1 for 5 with 3 RBIs including a sacrifice fly and 1 walk while playing short stop. Jay Hrdlicka went 1 for 5 with 1 RBI, 1 walk, and 2 runs scored as Northwest's designated hitter. Kevin Handzlik earned 2 walks in the game. Aaron Barratt went 1 for 5 with a walk and 2 runs scored as Northwest's right fielder. Zach Douglas earned two walks in the game as a late-game pinch runner and defensive substitution to catcher. In total, Northwest scored 12 runs off of 15 hits, 10 RBIs, 12 walks, 5 strike-outs, and left 11 runners on base.

Defense - Northwest was charged with 4 errors in the game (Gotta, Barratt, Meyer, and Hietpas). Northwest turned 1 double-play in the game.

Pitching - Joseph Hietpas earned the start in Game 1. In total, Joe worked 4.0 innings, allowed 4 hits, 7 runs (only 3 earned), 5 walks, 1 strike-out, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and he hit 1 batter. Nikko Pablo came into the game in the 5th inning and worked 2.0 innings, allowed 1 hit, 1 run (earned), 3 walks, 2 strike-outs, 1 wild pitch, 0 balks, and he did not hit a batter in the game. Bryce Shea came into the game in the 7th inning and worked 1.2 innings, allowed 1 hit, 2 runs (both earned), 2 walks, 0 strike-outs, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and he did not hit a batter. With 2 outs in the bottom of the 8th inning, Carson Smith came into the game for the Bearcats. In total, Carson worked 3.1 innings, allowed 1 hit, 0 runs, 2 walks, 3 strike-outs, 1 wild pitch, 0 balks, and he hit 3 batters in the game.

NWMSU Athletics' story link - http://www.bearcatsports.com/news/2016/3/10/baseball-opens-series-at-washburn.aspx

Next - As of now, Game 2 is set for Friday, March 11, 2016, at 3pm. Weather may force a change though so check out bearcatsports.com for the latest information on schedule change. Notwithstanding the Washburn's Head Coach regrettable language to the umpire on Thursday, both teams battled hard in an epic game. Get a good night's sleep folks, Game 2 and 3 are going to be outstanding, dramatic, and epic contests. 

Stay tuned to live stats by clicking on the official website of Northwest Athletics - www.bearcatsports.com.

Go Cats!!

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