ALTON, Illinois – Senior right fielder Ben Hines tattooed a first-pitch fastball from fifth-ranked Webster University relief ace Ben Kowalski for a two-run walk-off home run, and The College of Wooster baseball team is in Monday's Alton Regional championship round with a 4-3 win over the Gorloks on Sunday evening at Lloyd Hopkins Field. Wooster will square off with Bethel University (Minnesota) (35-9) at 11:30 a.m. ET/10:30 a.m. CT on Monday. Wooster will need to win twice over Bethel on Monday to advance to next weekend's NCAA Div. III Super Regional.
Wooster's (32-15) seniors from the 2019 Wooster Regional championship team had the Fighting Scots' fate in their hands in the bottom of the ninth inning. Senior catcher Michael Thomas took a Kowalski pitch off the helmet for his 20th hit-by-pitch of the season. Kowalski rebounded to get senior center fielder Ben Gbur to pop out on the infield. Then, Hines guessed correctly on Webster's right-hander's first offering, and sent a no-doubt-about-it walk-off well over the left field wall.
The Scots' bullpen worked its magic and was unhittable down the stretch, keeping the game well within reach. Junior left-hander Ryan Sullivan jammed Webster first baseman Parker Wielt on a 1-2 pitch in the top of the fifth inning, and the popup found its way into the waiting glove of first-year third baseman Nick Pett in foul territory. That marked the second of 14 straight batters retired by Sullivan and junior Ethan Samangy, as the Gorloks went down in order in the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth innings.
Earlier, Wooster's defense picked up sophomore starter Corey Knauf several times, and it was the Scots' glovework that kept the game scoreless until the fifth inning. In the first inning, senior shortstop Tyler Chumita started a six-four-three double play that enabled Knauf to work around back-to-back walks that started the frame. An inning later, sophomore second baseman Eli Westrick alertly tagged his counterpart A.J. Smith on a slow grounder to the right side as part of the Scots' second double play of the night. Chumita's diving catch well beyond his shortstop position was the web gem of the third inning, and in the fourth, the Scots' senior started an inning-ending two-for-one special for Wooster's third double play of the night.
Webster third baseman Ben Swords broke the scoreless tie in the fifth inning by depositing a two-run double into the alley in right field, and designated hitter Evan Evola upped the lead to 3-0 on an RBI ground out later in the inning. Prior to the runs, catcher Zach Goodman started the fifth with a walk, then moved up 90 feet when center fielder Adam Lovell smashed a single through the left side.
Wooster started to chip away in the bottom of the sixth inning. Hines replaced Gbur on the bases on a fielder's choice. Next, Hines swiped second base for his 30th stolen base of the season, the program's top total since W Association Hall of Famer Matt Miller logged 30 in 2004. Then, Chumita roped a single up the middle that cut Wooster's deficit to 3-1.
In the seventh inning, a non-catch foul ball call negated Wooster's sacrifice fly. Webster's Wielt made a catch near the fence in foul territory that Pett tagged up and scored on. However, the ruling on the play was that Wielt did not complete to process of the catch versus dropping the ball on the transfer, thus scratching out Pett's tag up. Wooster did get the run across on Hines' fielder's choice, thanks to senior left fielder Dominic Stilliana, who eluded the tag of Swords on his way to third base. Kowalski hung in there and struck out Chumita with the bases loaded to protect a 3-2 lead.
Kowalski kept it a 3-2 game in the bottom of the eighth inning by getting the lead runner at home plate on a squeeze bunt attempt by the Scots.
Samangy improved to 3-0 with three innings of nine-up, nine-down baseball. Sullivan went two innings and allowed two runs on three hits. Knauf allowed just one run on two hits in his four-plus innings of work, and the aforementioned double plays helped the right-hander navigate around six free passes.
Carter Hunt kept Wooster in check for 5 2/3 innings. He allowed one run on two hits and struck out five. Kowalski finished the game with three runs on four hits in 2 2/3 innings.
Junior first baseman Dane Camphausen was the lone player on either side with multiple hits in the elimination game.
Of note, Wooster is in the championship round of the regional for the third straight time the Scots have made the tournament. Wooster won the 2018 Mideast Regional and advanced to the NCAA Div. III "World Series" that year, in what was the final season of eight-team regionals. Wooster won the four-team 2019 Wooster Regional, coming all the way back after dropping the opener, a feat this year's team will be aiming to replicate on Monday.