WHITEWATER, Wis.- UW-Oshkosh baseball will play in the second WIAC Tournament (presented by Culver's) championship game in four years after defeating UW-Platteville, 15-5, in seven innings at Prucha Field in Whitewater on Friday (May 9).
 
The third-seeded Titans (31-11) ranked No. 25 in the nation by D3baseball.com and No. 23 by the American Baseball Coaches Association, won all five games over the Pioneers (20-19) this season, adding a victory to their conference-opening series sweep at Tiedemann Field on March 27-28. Their overall winning streak also increased to 10 games, the longest this season.
 
Oshkosh has scored 30 runs across 15 innings in the conference tournament after defeating second-seeded UW-La Crosse, 15-4, in eight innings on Friday (May 8). Titan batters accumulated 20 hits including six doubles and a home run.
 
Brett Gaynor (Long Grove, Ill./Stevenson) was UW-Oshkosh's starter on Friday, moving to a 6-2 record in 12 appearances and nine starts. He threw 6.2 innings and fanned six batters while allowing five runs (three earned) on 10 hits. Ryan Richter (Waukesha/Waukesha West) played the relief role for the second straight day, striking out the only Pioneer he faced.
 
At the plate, every Oshkosh batter hit safely at least twice and recorded at least one hit. Nick Shiu (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) and Jake Surane (Lincolnshire, Ill./Stevenson) both went 4-for-5. They also added three runs along with Logan Schill (Pewaukee/Pewaukee) and both Surane and Owen Housinger (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Stevenson) recorded three RBIs. Surane and Jack McNamara (La Grange, Ill./Lyons) had two doubles, Shiu and Zach Taylor (Long Grove, Ill./Stevenson) had one, and Schill hit a home run.
 
UW-Oshkosh never trailed in the contest and grabbed a first-inning lead on two runs. Surane singled through the left side of the infield to score Shiu and scored himself when Housinger singled to left field.
 
In the second inning, Schill reached first base on an error, advancing to third with a steal and a Shiu fielder's choice before putting Oshkosh up 3-0. Oshkosh scored four more runs in the third inning before the Pioneers finally got on the board. McNamara sent Housinger and Brenden Max (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) on a double and scored when Schill homered to left field in the following at-bat.
 
The teams traded runs on RBI singles in the fourth inning and the score sat at 8-1 heading into the fifth.
 
Shiu singled and Surane doubled to lead off the fifth inning, scoring when Taylor singled to left field. UW-Oshkosh loaded the bases later that inning but couldn't score before the third out was made.
 
 After Platteville scored on another RBI single in the top of the sixth inning before Oshkosh scored five runs on two hits, four walks, and two hit batters in the bottom of the inning. Surane sent Schill home with a ground rule double. Taylor loaded the bases with a walk and the Titans scored in each of the next four plate appearances on back-to-back hit by pitches followed by consecutive walks.
 
The Pioneers nearly forced an eighth inning by adding a pair of runs to cut the deficit to 15-5, but Richter relieved Gaynor and shut the door on Platteville with a strkeout
 
Oshkosh will be making its eighth appearance in the WIAC Tournament championship game. Previous trips include 2022, 2011, 2007, 2004, 2003, 2001, 1999, and 1998. They won the 1998 title in Oshkosh, the first year the event was held.
 
The Titans will face the winner of Friday's third game between UW-Platteville and UW-Whitewater on Saturday (May 10) at 11 a.m. The Pioneers defeated the Warhawks, 6-3, in Thursday's first game. The Warhawks played UW-La Crosse in the first elimination game on Friday and beat the Eagles, 6-5.