UW-L takes on No.-1 hitting, No.-2 scoring team in nation
APPLETON, Wis. – In its first trip in school history to the Division III College World Series, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse baseball team will be the nightcap in the first round.
At 7:45 p.m. tonight at Fox Cities Stadium, the Eagles (33-13) will play Salisbury (33-4-1), which is making its second consecutive trip to the series and has made it four times since 2000.
You can watch the game live here.
In the double-elimination series, the winner of this matchup will take on the winner of the Trinity-Emory game. Those winners will play at 7:45 p.m. Saturday. The losers of each matchup will play at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
EAGLES vs. SEA GULLS
The Sea Gulls are No. 1 in the nation in batting average (.359), on-base percentage (.448) and are second in runs (10.1). They’ve won nine in a row and have put up double digit runs their last six games. Salisbury is a team that can both swipe the bases (82 this season) and clear them with one swing (26 home runs).
The Eagles, 15-3 in their last 18 games, aren’t too shabby, offensively. They average 7.1 runs and have 48 stolen bases this season. UW-L is 28th in the nation in batting average (.328) and has hit 30 homers.
The offenses are led by Taylor Kohlwey for UW-L and Danny Breen for the Sea Gulls.
Kohlwey, a Holmen, Wis., native, was named the Midwest Region position player of the year by the American Baseball Coaches Association. The junior is 19th in the nation in batting (.439) and 26th in OBP (.519). Kohlwey, who is 6-foot-3, has six home runs, 20 doubles, 10 stolen bases, 42 RBI and 50 runs (21st in the nation). He was a double away from the cycle in the Midwest Regional win that propelled UW-L to the World Series.
Breen is 21st in the nation in batting (.438). He doesn’t boast as big a bat as Kohlwey, but is one of three on Salisbury with double-digit steals (12). This season, the senior has 10 doubles, 4 homers and 35 RBI.
On the mound, UW-L’s ace is another Holmen native, Ben Cejka. The 6-3, 220-pounder is 7-2 this season with a 2.88 ERA. He has 65 strikeouts in 81⅓ innings. He does have a wild side to him, however. The junior has 26 walks and has hit 16 batters this season.
The Sea Gulls have two primary pitchers in Brett Collacchi and Dan Fein, who last pitched on May 13 and 14, respectively.
Fein is a 5-9, 180-pound senior with a 6-0 record. He has a 2.90 ERA with 39 strikeouts and just 9 walks in 62 innings. Collacchi, a 6-footer, has a 6-2 record with a 3.31 ERA. The senior has 50 strikeouts and a 26 walks in 65⅓ innings.
