Tigers Fall In Game 3 To Top-Ranked Wooster In NCAC Tournament Semifinals

WOOSTER, Ohio - They had their chances, but by game's end the Wittenberg Tigers found themselves on the short end of a 13-3 score against the College of Wooster. The Scots, the No. 1 ranked team in all of NCAA Division III, moved into the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament championship game for a fourth consecutive year by closing out the Tigers by a 2-1 margin in the semifinal series.

The Tigers closed out the season with a 23-16 overall record after finishing second in the NCAC West Division for a second consecutive year. Wittenberg also lost in the tournament semifinals in 2005. Wooster, the East Division champion with a 15-1 record, improved to 36-7 overall and advanced to face West Division champion Ohio Wesleyan in a best-of-three series at Carleton Davidson Stadium in Springfield on May 4-5.

The Scots, who rallied to win the series after losing the opener 8-7 on Saturday, pounced on Wittenberg early, putting three runs on the board in the first two innings against starter Trey Richardson, a 6-11 junior righthander. Wooster then broke the game open in a strange third inning in which the Scots pushed six runs across the plate on just two hits against a pair of Wittenberg relievers. Three walks and a hit batsman were sandwiched between a one-out double and a game-breaking grand slam by Wooster's Rob Romick.

After two more Wooster runs in the fourth inning made it an 11-0 advantage for the home team, the Tigers finally slowed the potent Scots attack with freshman righthander Tim Antil, who went the final 4.1 innings, allowing four hits and two earned runs.

Offensively, Wittenberg got three runs back in the fifth inning, but the Tigers stranded seven baserunners, four of whom were in scoring position when the inning ended. Only sophomore catcher Matt Steinke enjoyed any consistent success offensively, collecting three hits in four plate appearances, including an RBI double.