UIC Claims Second Horizon League Baseball Championship

May 29, 2005

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Rallying from three runs down through two innings, top-seed University of Illinois at Chicago claimed the school's second Horizon League Baseball Championship in three years Sunday with a 9-6 victory over third-seed University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the winner-take-all title game at Victory Field.


With the win, the Flames (38-19-1) earned the Horizon League's automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals, the pairings for which will be announced Monday at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time on ESPN.


UIC, which had lost to UW-Milwaukee 8-4 Saturday to force Sunday's rematch, scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth and added two more in the seventh. Meanwhile, Zach Peterson and Ryan Zink -- the Flames' No. 1 and No. 2 starters -- combined for 7 2/3 innings of scoreless relief to shut down the Panthers who scored all six of their runs in the first inning and a third off starter Tom Szalewski.


With one out and runners on first and second in the UIC sixth, Bryan Russo started the comeback with an RBI single. UW-Milwaukee starter Rick Cavaiani (2-10) then struck out Mike Bruszer and Jeff Gremley for what seemed to be the end of the inning. UWM catcher Jeremy Wilson, however, was unable to hold onto the strikeout, allowing Gremley to reach base. Shane Crowder then coaxed a walk out of Cavaiani, forcing in Bryan Nolte, and Larry Gempp Jr. followed by roping a two-run single through the right side to give the Flames a 7-6 lead they wouldn't relinquish.


Zink then picked up where Peterson left off, allowing only one hit while striking out three over the final three innings for his third save of the season. Peterson won his ninth consecutive decision and second of the tournament with 4 2/3 scoreless innings. Both were named to the all-tournament team with Zink earning Most Valuable Players honors after tossing a complete-game, four-hit shutout of Youngstown State University Thursday.


The Flames added a pair of insurance runs in the seventh on a bases-loaded single by Russo.


UW-Milwaukee led off the game with two runs in the top of the first to put the pressure on UIC for the second straight day. The Flames countered with three in the bottom of the inning, but the Panthers came right back with four in the second, highlighted by Zak Rivera's two-run scoring single up the middle that chased Szalewski. UIC Head Coach Mike Dee then brought in Peterson, who allowed a pair of singles but stranded the bases loaded, and UWM never scored again.


Cavaiani suffered his second hard-luck loss of the tournament, giving up seven runs -- only two of which were earned -- in 5 2/3 innings.


Joining Zink and Peterson on the all-tournament team were OF Bart Babineaux and C Bryan Nolte of UIC; 1B Blake Kangas, OF Mike Goetz, OF Joe Nowicki and DH Zak Rivera of UW-Milwaukee; 3B Justin Banks and SS Charles Schultz of Youngstown State University; and 2B Bobby Cash of Cleveland State University.

Game 11123456789RHE# 3 UW-Milwaukee240000000--6101#1 UIC30000420X--9112

WP-Zach Peterson (10-1)LP-Rick Cavaiani (2-10)S-Ryan Zink (3)Time-2:38