Coming off a spring break trip in Davenport, Florida, where they competed in the RussMatt Invitational, UW-Eau Claire baseball faced the UW-Oshkosh Titans from March 28-29. The Blugolds won the series, winning three of four games over the weekend.
This series win was the Blugolds’ second Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) series victory under Head Coach Patrick Reilly. Reilly is in his third season as head coach of the Blugolds and has helped guide the program to a 9-5 record so far this season.
Reilly said it was a great weekend for the team regardless of the results, but the results made the weekend even better.
In the opening game of the series, third-year pitcher Nicholas Meuser took the mound for the Blugolds. Saturday’s weather featured a low of 20 degrees, with a high of 43 degrees. Meuser said the team was prepared to play in the cold weather.
Meuser entered Saturday’s start with a 2.12 ERA and continued his strong start to the season, going five innings for the Blugolds and allowing one earned run on two hits. The offense behind Meuser provided early run support, as they scored three runs in the first inning.
“You go into these conference games against tough opponents like Oshkosh,” Meuser said. “When you put up three [runs] in the first inning, it makes pitching easier.”
Throughout the game, the Blugolds scored 11 runs on 13 hits. First-year outfielder Kellen Smith went a perfect 3-3 at the plate, driving in four runs. The Blugolds went on to win the game 11-4, as Meuser notched his second win of the season.
In the second game of the Saturday doubleheader, the Titans took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning off a Gavin Persson RBI single. In the top of the third inning, the Blugolds responded by scoring five runs.
With one out, second-year outfielder Austin Curti hit a bases clearing double down the left-field line to give the Blugolds a 5-1 lead.
Third-year pitcher Evan Fischer made the start for the Blugolds, going seven innings and allowing three earned runs. Fischer induced 12 ground-ball outs while walking just one batter.
Up 6-3 entering the bottom of the eighth inning, fourth-year pitcher Sebastian De La Toba came in for relief. De La Toba faced seven batters and held the Titans scoreless in his two innings of work to earn the fifth save of his career.
The doubleheader sweep on Saturday was the Blugolds’ first over the Titans since the program was re-established in 2021.
In the first game of the Sunday doubleheader, the Titans scored five runs in the first two innings. The fifth run from the Titans was scored on an error committed by the Blugolds.
Through six innings, the Blugolds trailed 8-0 and were held scoreless on four hits. The Blugolds got on the board in the seventh inning, but it wasn’t enough, as the Titans secured a 11-1 win in eight innings.
In the season series finale, the Blugolds scored three first-inning runs. First-year catcher John DiGregorio hit a solo home run for his second home run of the season with Curti driving in two runs off a double.
After the Titans tied the score at 4-4 in the sixth inning, a DiGregorio sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh inning gave the Blugolds a 5-4 lead. In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Titans took the lead for the first time to get ahead 6-5.
The Blugolds committed two errors in the eighth inning, with a throwing error from second-year first baseman Logan Hesselman allowing the go ahead run.
Down to their last two outs in the ninth inning after a leadoff strikeout, the Blugolds put runners on second and third base after a single and a walk.
With one out, DiGregorio hit a fly ball to shallow right field. Fourth-year infielder Austin Buck was given the green light to tag up on third base once the ball was caught. The throw from the outfield was not made in time, and Buck slid into home plate safely to tie the game.
An infield error committed by the Titans during the next play and a Curti two-run triple extended the Blugolds’ lead to 9-6. Making his second appearance of the series, De La Toba faced four batters and induced a double play to end the game.
“To come back was really fun, and the way we did it was kind of an emotional rollercoaster,” Reilly said.
De La Toba, who has made seven starts in 34 career appearances, has been used strictly as a relief pitcher this season. In 14 innings, De La Toba has pitched to a 2.57 ERA while holding opponents to a .244 batting average.
Reilly said he envisions De La Toba pitching in a starting and bullpen role as the season goes on.
“He wants the ball [and] wants the opportunity to compete,” Reilly said. “Obviously in this situation this past weekend, [he] was not afraid to do it twice … looking forward to having more big innings from him.”
First and second-year athletes drove in 22 of the team’s 27 runs over the weekend. Curti was the top run producer for the Blugolds as he drove in 10 runs.
The Blugolds’ 27 runs is the most runs scored in a conference season series for the program since 2024.
Benes can be reached at [email protected].
