STEVENS POINT BASEBALL FALLS IN SECTIONAL FINAL TO EAU CLAIRE NORTH
Zaleski Sports
EAU CLAIRE – Stevens Point’s bid for a state tournament berth came up one win short as the Panthers were shutout by Eau Claire North 7-0 in a WIAA Division 1 sectional championship game Tuesday at Carson Park.
SPASH reached the final with a 6-1 win in the semifinals over Eau Claire Memorial as Noah Marschke and Josh Opiola combined on a three-hitter.
Marschke went 6 1/3 innings with nine strikeouts before Opiola came in to get the final two outs to finish off the win.
Tommy Drohner, Kale Roth and Deacon Kobach each had two hits, and Bennett Klish drove in a pair of runs for the Panthers, who busted open a tie game with a five-run bottom of the sixth.
Drohner drove in a run with a single, Klish knocked in two with another single, and two more runs came in on back-to-back errors to push Stevens Point in front.
The Panthers (20-7) were held to just three hits in the loss to North (24-2) as the Huskies will return to the state tournament for the fifth time in the past six seasons.
Semifinals
Panthers 6, Old Abes 1
Eau Claire Memorial 000 010 0 - 1 3 3
Stevens Point 001 005 x - 6 10 0
WP: Noah Marschke. LP: Dylan O’Connell.
SO: O’Connell (5 2/3 inn.) 6, Peyton Platter (1/3 inn.) 1; Marschke (6 1/3 inn.) 9, Josh Opiola (2/3 inn.) 0. BB: O’Connell 2, Platter 1; Marschke 1, Opiola 0.
Top hitters: ECM, Moss 2x2, RBI. SP, Tommy Drohner 2x4, RBI; Kale Roth 2x4, 2 runs; Bennett Klish 1x4, 2 RBI; Deacon Koback 2x2.
Records: Eau Claire Memorial 17-9; Stevens Point 20-6.
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Championship
Huskies 7, Panthers 0
Stevens Point 000 000 0 - 0 3 2
Eau Claire North 100 402 x - 7 9 1
WP: Milner. LP: Kaden Thauer.
SO: Thauer (3 1/3 inn.) 1, Ty Rechner (1/3 inn.) 0, Opiola (2 inn.) 1, Colby Hintz (1/3 inn.) 0; Milner (5 inn.) 4, Wilkinson (2 inn.) 3. BB: Thauer 1, Rechner 1, Opiola 0, Hintz 0; Milner 1, Wilkinson 0.
Top hitters: ECN, Hanson 3x4, HR, 2 RBI; Kein 2x2, 2B, RBI; Richardson 2B, RBI; Wilkinson 2x3, 2B.
Records: Stevens Point 20-7; Eau Claire North 24-2.