The No. 15 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team finished the second day of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament 1-1 and advanced to the Championship game which will be held at Copeland Park in La Crosse, Wis.
 
The Warhawks (29-13 overall) dropped the first game against La Crosse by a score of 5-2, but rebounded in the second game with a 3-2 victory over UW-Oshkosh.
 
In the opener, UW-Whitewater was held scoreless until the top of the ninth inning, but were unable to complete the comeback. The Eagles (33-8 overall) tallied a run in the second inning, two in the third and sixth innings to seal the victory.
 
Junior pitcher Ankur Shah (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) started the game but only lasted three innings. Shah took the loss moving him to 5-2 on the season. Junior Mike Nompleggi (Oconto Falls/Oconto Falls) came in, in relief giving up two runs on four hits in five innings of work.
 
Junior shortstop Jordan Kuczynski (Germantown/Germantown) lead off the game with a single to left field. Kuczynski finished the afternoon off 1-for-4 at the plate. Freshman outfielder Matt Wary (Elk Grove, Ill./Elk Grove) got things started by singling home pinch runner Dylan Bersch (Pulaski/Pulaski) for the first run of the game for the Warhawks in the top of the ninth inning.
 
Sophomore Daytona Bryden (Rockton, IL/Hononegah) followed up Wary with an RBI single for the second and final run of the ball game. Bryden finished 1-for-4 at the plate. Freshman third baseman Cal Aldridge (Crystal Lake, Ill./Prairie Ridge) and senior catcher Dane Burman (Milton, Wis./Milton) also posted a hit on the afternoon.
 
In the second game, the Warhawks got a run in the bottom of the first thanks to a sacrifice fly off the bat of sophomore second baseman Steve Chamberlain (Rockford, IL/Guilford). Chamberlain finished the night 1-for-3 at the plate with a run scored and a run batted in. The Titans responded scoring twice in the top of the third inning to take the lead.
 
UW-Whitewater posted a run in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings to seal the victory. Sophomore pitcher/outfielder Austin Jones (Wauwatosa, Wis./West) led the Warhawk offense going 2-for-3 from the plate and a key RBI double in the bottom of the sixth inning.
 
Joining Jones with two hits was Bryden who batted in the lead-off spot. Bryden finished 2-for-3 from the plate and a run scored. Chamberlain, Burman, and Wary each recorded a hit in the night cap for the Warhawks.
Sophomore righty Lake Bachar (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) scattered nine hits over nine innings to pick up his sixth victory on the season (6-5).
 
UW-Whitewater returns to action tomorrow afternoon as they take on UW-La Crosse at 12 p.m. in the WIAC Championship game. The Warhawks will have to win twice to earn the automatic qualifier for the NCAA tournament.