RIVER FALLS, Wis.- UW-Oshkosh baseball won the first game of its doubleheader against UW-River Falls at the Falcons' First National Bank of River Falls Field on Saturday (April 18), 5-4, but dropped the seven-inning 18-8 decision in the nightcap.
 
The Titans (11-16, 7-9 WIAC) totaled 12 hits in the series opener against the Falcons' (15-12, 8-8 WIAC) four before River Falls eked out a 14-11 edge in the second game.
 
After a no-decision bid against UW-Stevens Point in his last start, Brett Gaynor (Long Grove, Ill./Stevenson) (2-0) earned the victory in the first game, pitching 6.0 innings and striking out eight batters while allowing two unearned runs on three hits, two walks and a hit batter. He fanned two batters in the second, fourth and sixth frames and faced the minimum with two groundouts and a strikeout in the third.
 
Braydon Skenandore (De Pere/West De Pere) led the Titans at the plate in the game with a 3-for-5 game and an RBI. Owen Housinger (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Stevenson), Trevor Morris (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) and Danny Connelly (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein) each collected an RBI and Housinger, Logan Schill (Pewaukee/Pewaukee), Morris and Cullen Kirchberg (DeForest/DeForest) had two hits. While going 0-2 in official at-bats, Aaron Davis (Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South) drew a career-high three walks.
 
Oshkosh took control of the opener right away, scoring a pair of runs in the first inning. Schill hit a one-out single to left field and scored the following at-bat when Morris doubled to left center. After advancing to third on Skenandore's single, Morris scored when Brenden Max (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) reached on an error.
 
The Titans tacked on another run in the second inning as Housinger scored Kirchberg, who reached on a double, with a hit through the middle of the infield.
 
River Falls got on the board in the fifth inning with a run on an error and another on a single, cutting the deficit to 3-2.
 
Falcon starter Shaun Gavin (4-2) was pulled for the start of the seventh inning after allowing three runs (two earned) on nine hits and four walks against four strikeouts.
 
Housinger hit a full count double off reliever Isaac Mens before Skenandore sent him home with a single bunt down the first base line. Morris tallied the fifth run of the game when Connelly was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Mens was then taken out and Cole Scheel stranded the remaining three runners when he induced a flyout by Kirchberg.
 
River Falls responded in the bottom half of the inning with a two-run double off Ethan Wick (Appleton/Appleton North) who came in for Gaynor. Colton Kachinsky (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way West) came in for the start of the inning but was pulled after issuing back-to-back walks. Wick lasted two batters, giving up a walk and the double, before Ben Buehring (Oshkosh/Oshkosh West) went to the mound and recorded three straight outs.
 
Logan Schill (Pewaukee/Pewaukee) reached first on a strikeout passed ball in the eighth and moved to third when Morris singled to left center, but was stranded there as Morris was caught stealing second.
 
Finishing out the game, Buehring struck out two Falcons in both the eighth and ninth innings and did not face more than three batters in each on his way to his second save of the season.
 
Josh Jansen (DeForest/DeForest) (1-5) started for Oshkosh in game two, but went just 1.2 innings when he allowed six runs (four earned) on four hits and three walks. He struck out two batters.
 
Oshkosh used five relief pitchers, none of which threw more than 1.2 innings and all allowed at least one earned run.
 
Jack McKellips (Oshkosh/Lourdes Academy) went a team-best 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, a run scored and three RBI, followed by David Wick's (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI.
 
Kirchberg, Jack McNamara (La Grange, Ill./Lyons) and Ben Volpe (Whitefish Bay/Whitefish Bay) added doubles while Housinger and Gavin Persson (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) both hit home runs in the loss.
 
The Falcons scored eight runs in the second inning and seven more in the third after Housinger took the first strike he saw over the left field fence in the top of the first.
 
Persson hit a leadoff home run in the third inning and McKellips hit his two-run home run in the fourth inning to make the score 15-4.
 
In the bottom of the fifth inning, River Falls recorded runs on a single and a sacrifice fly, pushing its lead to 17-4.
 
The Titans made a late comeback attempt in the top of the seventh inning when they scored four runs to get back within the 10 run threshold. McNamara got things going with a one-out double and Cash Kaczmarek (Barrington, Ill./Lake Zurich) pinch ran for him. David Wick (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) scored Kaczmarek on a double, Volpe scored Tim Witchger (Chicago, Ill./Notre Dame College Prep) who reached on a single and McKellips hit another double to plate Volpe in back-to-back-to-back at-bats before River Falls got the third out, leaving McKellips on base.
 
The Falcons ended the game with an RBI single in the bottom half of the inning.
 
The Titans and Falcons return to First National Bank of River Falls Field on Sunday (April 19) to finish the four-game series.