Contact: Nicholas Osterloo, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324
STEVENS POINT, Wis. (May 20, 2022) - Winning their first game of the NCAA Tournament, the North Central College baseball team secured the victory in dramatic fashion as
Jack Oberli belted a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning to earn the Cardinals' a 12-8 win over Coe College on Friday night at Zimmermann Field.
The Kohawks took advantage of two hit by pitches in the top of the first inning, as a two-run double from Jacob Brosius opened the scoring and took a 2-0 lead. They added two more runs on a Jack Allison home run to center field.
Dom Listi led off the bottom of the first inning with a double down the left field line. The next batter, Luke Lehnen plated Listi with a single to center field. Lehnen came around to score thanks to a single up the middle from Trey Roach, as the Cardinals trailed 4-2 after one inning of play.
Starter Ryan Behling settled in, keeping the Kohawks scoreless over the next two innings. In the bottom of the fourth, Paul Beverly sent his fifth home run of the season over the center field fence. On the very next pitch, Michael Davis launched a home run to left field to knot the game at 4-4.
Behling posted a three up and three down inning in the top half of the fifth. Lehnen and Justin Rios each walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning. After moving up a base on a wild pitch, Jared Wojcik hit a sacrifice fly to deep center field, sending Lehnen home to score and give the Cardinals their first lead of the game, 5-4.
Coe tied up the game at 5-5 on a safety squeeze before hitting a two-run home run to retake the lead, 7-5.
Robert Deischer came in relief and threw a hitless half-inning in the eighth. With two outs and runners on second and third, Listi doubled to left center to bring the game to a 7-7 tie entering the ninth inning.
Taking advantage of a Cardinal error, Coe pushed a run across the board to go ahead, 8-7. After a triple from the Kohawks, Jason Shanner entered the game and forced a ground out to John Petty to keep it a one-run game.
Rios led off the ninth with a four-pitch walk before Trey Roach and Paul Beverly were each hit by a pitch to load the bases. The Cardinals tied the contest at eight apiece, thanks to a Coe error. With the bases still loaded, Jack Oberli sent a home run over the left field fence for a walk-off grand slam, giving North Central a 12-8 victory over the Kohawks in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Shanner picked up his fifth win of the season. Behling finished the day with nine strikeouts over his seven innings pitched, allowing seven runs. At the plate, Beverly had a game-high three hits to add to his three runs and one RBI. Listi drove in two while Davis also scored three runs. Oberli tallied four RBIs on the final at-bat of the game. To view the postgame press conference from head coach Ed Mathey, Oberli, and Beverly, click HERE.
The Cardinals face host UW-Stevens Point at 12 PM tomorrow at Zimmermann Field. The winner advances to the Regional Championship. You can find live coverage links to that game HERE.
Download the free North Central Cardinals app, available for iOS and Android devices, to receive up-to-the-minute news, scores and updates on your favorite North Central teams. Click HERE for more information.
