Box Score
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – No. 3 seed Wayne State blew open a 2-1 lead scoring nine runs in the third inning and cruised to a 28-12 victory over No. 5 seed Southwest Minnesota State at the NCAA Central Region Tournament in Grand Junction, Colo.
SMSU drops to 28-14 overall and will now play No. 6 seed Colorado State-Pueblo on Saturday afternoon starting at 4 p.m. MDT. Wayne State, now 44-13 overall, will play No. 1 seed Mesa State in the winner's bracket final at 12:30 p.m. MDT. If SMSU defeats CSU-Pueblo, it will play Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. versus the loser of the MSC/WSC game.
A pair of records were set or tied in the losing effort for SMSU. In the bottom of the first inning, Mustang senior Greg Laughlin drilled a one-out double over the right fielder for his 209th career hit, setting a new SMSU record and breaking the previous record held by Colby Pack (2003-06). Andrew Kinney belted an eighth inning home run, his 17th of the season, to tie Travis Irwin (2002) for the school single-season record.
WSC's Justin Hemauer set an NCAA postseason record with seven hits in eight at bats, while WSC as a team set an NCAA postseason record with 32 base hits.
The Wildcats jumped on SMSU early scoring two runs in the first inning as Justin Hemauer lead off the game with a triple that was lost in the sun by Mustang left fielder Derek West. A sac fly by Eric Bond scored Hemauer for the game's first run and was followed moments later by a solo home run by Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Player of the Year Joe Wendte.
Laughlin's first inning double set up SMSU's first run as he would come around to score on a two-out double off the left-center field fence by Matt Bauer to trim the WSC lead to 2-1.
Following a scoreless second inning by both teams, WSC blew the game open scoring nine runs on eight hits and sending 14 men to the plate.
Mustang starter Curtis Smith struggled on the mound pitching two-plus innings allowing eight runs on seven hits while walking two and striking out two. Smith dropped to 7-3 on the season, suffering his third straight loss in as many starts.
SMSU scored a single run in the fourth as Doug Stearns blasted a solo home run to centerfield for his fourth home run of the season to make the score 11-2, but WSC answered right back with a three run fifth inning to continue the blowout.
Laughlin finished 4-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBI, while Bauer was 3-for-5 with three RBI and a home run. Kinney finished 2-for-5 with four RBI, while Jake Munsch added three hits.
