Wright State wins 2006 Horizon League Baseball Championship

May 28, 2006

Game 10: (#3) Wright State 4, (#5) Butler 1
(Wright State wins championship)
Ross Oeder drove in a pair of runs with a second-inning double and Wright State pitchers Chris Snyder and Joe Smith combined on a five-hitter as host Wright State edged fifth seed Butler 4-1 to claim the 2006 Horizon League Baseball Championship. The third-seeded Raiders won the League summit for the first time since 1995 and will enter the NCAA Championship at 32-25 while Butler saw its season come to an end at 21-36.

Oeder's double---his 13th hit in four tournament games this week---capped a three-run flurry against Butler starter Bryan Bokowy (5-7). WSU left fielder Justin Wilson opened the inning with his seventh home run of the season, and Brian Shoup followed with a single. Justin Parker drew a one-out walk and Oeder followed two batters with a shot just inside the third base line to plate both teammates for a 3-0 advantage.

Butler got on the board in the fourth when Joe Dempsey belted his tenth home run of the year---and second of the tournament---over the left field fence, but could get no closer. The Bulldogs threatened in the top of the seventh when Dustin Bucalo reached on an error but WSU answered the challenge as Aaron Garcia fielded Joel Matheny's bunt attempt to start a 2-6-3 double play. The twin killing was Wright State's 62nd of the season, setting a single-season program standard.

WSU pushed the margin to 4-1 in the bottom of the frame when John Kopilchack doubled to open the frame. Oeder followed with a sacrifice bunt and Dan Biedenharn lifted a sacrifice fly to right field as Kopilchack narrowly beat Stephen Gill's throw to the plate. Butler mounted one final comeback attempt in the ninth with Joe Pauley's bad-hop single and an error on Bucalo's grounder with one out, but Matheny's ground ball to first baseman Jeremy Hamilton turned into another double play as the Raiders raced onto the field to celebrate their first title in 11 years.

Snyder (5-7) allowed only three hits in five innings before turning the game over to closer Smith, did not allow a run in 28.1 innings against Horizon League opponents during the regular season. The Raider closer, a NCBWA Stopper of the Year candidate, allowed only two hits to register his 13th save of the year with the four shutout innings.

Wright State outscored its opponents 52-5 in its four appearances during the week, setting a Championship single-game record with 26 hits in a 20-3 victory over UW-Milwaukee on Thursday. The Raiders opened their tournament by defeating sixth-seeded Cleveland State 16-1 on Wednesday and posted a 12-0 shutout against Butler on Saturday.

Oeder was named the Championship's Most Valuable Player, leading a group of six Raiders on the All-Tournament Team. The WSU second baseman was 13-of-20 at the plate, scoring eight runs and driving in four. Amin Abusaleh, Aaron Garcia, Hamilton and Justin Wilson also earned All-Tournament honors for their offensive prowess, while Barrett allowed only eight hits in 13 shutout innings (five versus Cleveland State and eight in the initial meeting with Butler).

The Raiders earned the Horizon League's automatic entry into the 64-team NCAA field, and will learn their opponents and destination Monday as the NCAA announces the pairings at 12:30 p.m. (Eastern time) on ESPN.

Box Score and Play-by-Play in PDF Format

2006 Horizon League Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team
Ross Oeder, Wright State (MVP)
Amin Abusaleh, Wright State
Robert Barrett, Wright State
Jeff Brown, Butler
Rob Brockel, UW-Milwaukee
Brian Deter, Butler
Aaron Garcia, Wright State
Stephen Gill, Butler
Jeremy Hamilton, Wright State
Ted Rosinski, UIC
Justin Wilson, Wright State