ADRIAN, Mich. – The Adrian College NCAA baseball team battled through back-to-back elimination games on Saturday at the NCAA Regional Tournament. The No. 2-seeded Bulldogs opened the day with an 8-2 victory over No. 1 Wittenberg University before earning a dramatic 2-1 walk-off win against No. 4 Webster University later in the evening. With the pair of victories, Adrian advances to the NCAA Regional Championship for the fourth consecutive season.
HOW IT HAPPENED GAME 1 (Adrian 8, Wittenberg 2)
- Wittenberg struck first with a pair of runs in the opening inning to take an early 2-0 advantage.
- Adrian responded in the second inning as Casey Finn delivered an RBI double before Rolando Jimenez followed with an RBI single to even the score.
- The Bulldogs erupted for three runs in the third inning to take control of the game. Christian Oliver ripped an RBI double, Jaxon McGuigan added a sacrifice fly, and Finn recorded another RBI single to push Adrian ahead 5-2.
- Adrian added three more runs in the fourth inning. Brendan Willadsen drove in a run before a bases-loaded walk and a bases-loaded fielder's choice extended the Bulldog lead to 8-2.
- After allowing two runs in the first inning, Landon Kozlowski settled in and turned in a strong outing on the mound. The right-hander tossed five innings while allowing two runs on six hits with two strikeouts.
- Sean Parker closed the door with four scoreless innings in relief to earn his second save of the season. Parker allowed just three hits while striking out three.
- Adrian totaled 10 hits offensively, led by multi-hit performances from Nic Bruder, Willadsen, Finn, and Jimenez.
HOW IT HAPPENED GAME 2 (Adrian 2, Webster 1)
- Webster entered the matchup after falling to No. 3 DePauw University, 11-2, earlier in the afternoon.
- The Gorloks grabbed a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning with an RBI single following a stolen base earlier in the frame.
- Adrian did not record its first hit until the fifth inning when Jake Burns singled to center field.
- Jack Boike ignited the Bulldogs in the sixth inning with a leadoff triple into the right field corner and later scored on an RBI single from Gabe Jones to tie the game at 1-1.
- Both teams were held scoreless until the bottom of the ninth inning. Jones drew a leadoff walk before Gavino Gomez entered as a pinch runner and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt.
- After Webster intentionally walked McGuigan to set up a potential double play, the Bulldogs put the ball in play and forced an errant throw to first base, allowing Gomez to race home with the game-winning run.
- Ambrose Horwath delivered another strong postseason performance, pitching seven innings while allowing one run on six hits with three strikeouts.
- Lincoln Lipinski earned the win in relief after throwing two perfect innings with four strikeouts.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will face No. 3 DePauw University on Sunday, May 17, at Nicolay Field in the NCAA Regional Championship. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 11:00 a.m., with a second game to follow if necessary. The winner of the regional will advance to the NCAA Super Regionals to face the winner of the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater Regional.
