Blue Devil baseball season comes to end in WIAC Championship semi-final game

UW-Stevens Point 8, UW-Stout 3 | WIAC Championship | D3photography Photo Gallery

WHITEWATER (May 22, 2021) - UW-Stout's 2021 season came to end in a semi-final game of the WIAC Baseball Championship, presented by Culver's, when the Blue Devils fell 8-3 in an elimination contest to top-seeded UW-Stevens Point Saturday at UW-Whitewater.

The Blue Devils (23-19) had stunned the Pointers (32-10) a day earlier, dropping Stevens Point into the loser's bracket with a 17-hit, 15-0, 7-inning decision. 

And Stout was on top again in the rematch less than 24 hours later, taking a 2-0 lead through four-and-a-half innings. The Blue Devils got on the board first when Charlie Szykowny beat out a bunt back to the pitcher, who threw the ball away for a two-base error to land the Stout shortstop on third base. Szykowny came home on Alex Jinkins' ground out to shortstop and the Blue Devils led 1-0. 

The Blue Devils doubles the score in the fifth inning. Dan Deis led off with a double down the left field line, then moved to third on Riley Boushack's sacrifice bunt. Deis came home on a wild pitch and Stout led 2-0.

But the Pointers exploded for four runs in the bottom of the inning off five hits - including a two-run double by Lucas Luedtke - and took advantage of a Stout error. Stout would finish the day with a season-high six errors. Stevens Point scored twice in the seventh and twice in the eighth to gather some distance between the two teams. 

Brock Burg got the call to the hill for the Blue Devils and went 5.0 innings, fanning five, but allowing nine hits and four runs, three earned. In all, Stout used four pitchers. Caleb Krommenakker worked 6.0 innings to get the win for the Pointers, striking out four and giving up four hits and two runs, one earned. 

The Blue Devils made some noise in the ninth innings. Joel Thimsen led off the inning with a single. Following two outs, Thimsen advanced to second on a throwing error and scored on a Riley Boushack single through the right side. Boushack stole second and Charlie Szykowny walked to put two runners on, but the Pointers' Austin Syverson earned the three-inning save by forcing a fielder's choice to third base. Syverson allowed three hits, one run and struck out one. 

Thimsen matched a season-high three hits, going 3 for 4. Stout finished with nine hits, getting one hit each from Szykowny, Boushack, Kasey Bass, Drew Ries, Dan Deis and Colin Hageman.

The Pointers tagged Stout's four pitchers for 13 hits, with Luedtke going 4 for 4 with three RBI. Tommy Duddleston was 3 for 4 and Bradley Comer was 3 for 5.

The 23 wins marked the most wins in single season since the 2007 season. The game marked the end of the collegiate careers for Dan Deis, Kasey Bass, Hunter Merrill, Logan Hile, James Palmer, Alex Mahaz and Alex Jinkins. 

The Pointers will play UW-Whitewater for the tournament title this afternoon, but will need to win two games to earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. If a second game is needed, the teams will play Sunday.