Eric Bacon and Isaac Webb belted home runs to start and finish a 10-run fifth inning as No. 4 Pittsburg State decked Central Oklahoma 13-2 in seven innings Thursday afternoon in a quarterfinal game of the MIAA Tournament at Wendell Simmons Field in Edmond, Okla.
The top-seeded Gorillas (41-9) advance to the semifinal round at 1 p.m. Friday against fourth-seeded Northwest Missouri (36-15). The Bearcats nipped Central Missouri 8-7 in 11 innings on a two-run single by freshman pinch-hitter Sam Dinkelman, his 10th hit in 49 at-bats this season.
The Bearcats swept a three-game series from the Gorillas in Maryville, Mo., and were the only team to win a series over PSU this season.
Leading 3-1, the Gorillas sent 13 batters to the plate in the fifth against four UCO pitchers. Bacon led off with a homer to right-center field, his seventh of the season, and that ended the day for Bronchos starter Brody Berlowitz (2-2).
Walks to Dagen Brewer and Grant Nottlemann put two runners on base with one out, and Cooper Wesslund’s double to right-center scored Brewer. Andrew Branson walked to load the bases, and pinch-hitter Landin Midgett drew a walk to force in a run.
With two outs, Jadyn McNealy’s single to right and Bacon’s walk each scored a run. Brewer’s flyball to deep left-center fell for a three-run double, and Webb launched a two-run homer, his 11th, over the left field fence for a 13-1 lead.
Bradyn McClure (5-0) gave up a homer to Colton Ayers on the third pitch of the game and worked his way out of bases-loaded jam in the first with an inning-ending double play. He allowed just one hit in the next four innings, struck out two batters and walked three while throwing 96 pitches.
Ty Blecha gave up a run on two hits in the sixth inning, and Ethan Froud worked a perfect seventh.
The Gorillas took a 3-1 lead in the fourth. A walk to Brewer, single by Webb and walk to Nottlemann loaded the bases. Wesslund singled to right field to score two runs, and Branson followed with an RBI single to left.
McNealy, Webb and Wesslund contributed two hits apiece to PSU’s 10-hit attack, and Brewer and Wesslund drove in three runs apiece.
The Bronchos (27-25) had four hits, including two doubles by Trevor Rowe.
Cent. Oklahoma 100 001 0 – 2 4 1
Pittsburg St. 000 3(10)0 x – 13 10 1
Brody Berlowitz, Mylan Childers (5), Tristan Wittau (5), Zack Hudspeth (5), Michael Lopez (6) and Trevor Rowe; Bradyn McClure, Ty Blecha (6), Ethan Froud (7) and Grant Nottlemann. W—McClure 5-0. L—Berlowitz (2-2). 2B—UCO: Rowe 2; PSU: Dagen Brewer, Cooper Wesslund. HR—UCO: Colton Ayres; PSU: Eric Bacon, Isaac Webb.
