Game 1 box          Game 2 box          Game 3 box

The UW-Parkside baseball team opened the 2008 season with four games against the region's top-ranked team, Grand Valley State. The early schedule does the Rangers no favors as it opens Great Lakes Valley Conference play at Southern Indiana, a team which is the defending regional champion.

Saturday's action saw a 3-hour rain delay to start the afternoon. Because of the delay, only one game was played (there are no lights at USI's baseball field). The Screaming Eagles logged a 6-3 win over the Rangers. UW-Parkside was the home team as the original conference schedule had the series slated for snow-covered Oberbruner Field.

Andy Heller gunned down Josh Huebner at home plate on a fly-out to left field. The double play held the Screaming Eagles scoreless in the top of the first; however, Southern Indiana scored in each of the next five innings.

Tim Schafer was the starting and losing pitcher for the Rangers. He worked 4.1 innings, giving up five runs, four earned, on eight hits. He struck out three and walked five.

John Pulera came on in relief and was touched up for a run in one-and-a-third innings.

Nic Larson picked up where he left off last season, blanking the Eagles in 2.1 innings of work. Steven Fox did not give up a run in the ninth inning.

Cory Julian was the winning pitcher for USI. He went seven innings and did not give up a hit. He is 2-2. Schafer is 0-1.

The Rangers were limited to five hits, all singles. #A.J. Marquardt and Eric Chappell# had two knocks each.

GAME 2
It was all Southern Indiana in Sunday's first game. The Screaming Eagles put up three crooked numbers, including a five-spot in the seventh inning, aided by three Ranger errors.

Todd Lorenz, UW-Parkside's all-time save leader, played a starting role and was roughed up for 12 runs, eight earned. He gave up 13 hits. Lorenz fell one out short of finishing the game as he was pulled with two outs in the seventh.

UW-Parkside scored single runs in both the fifth and sixth innings. Matt Abraham  hit a single up the middle which chased home Spino, who singled, in the fifth. In the sixth inning, Marquardt's single to center drove in Heller, who doubled.

USI starter Jeremy Kehrt pitched six innings in picking up the win. He limited the Rangers to four hits. Kehrt is 3-1. Lorenz fell to 0-2.

GAME 3
The Rangers left Evansville with an 0-7 record after a 6-5 loss. The Rangers squandered a 5-0 lead in losing its first one-run game of the year.

UW-Parkside scored three in the second and two in the third. In the second inning, Spino led it off with a single. Abraham doubled to right before Chappell's infield hit chased Spino. Mike Pena drove in a run with a single to center and Heller was hit by a pitch to score the third run. A line drive double play ended the rally. It was the same suspects in the third. Marquardt singled and Spino walked to start the frame. Abraham singled in a run and the other RBI came on a sacrifice fly by Chappell.

Travis Klostermann was the starting and losing pitcher. He worked five innings, giving up six earned runs on 13 hits. He started the sixth, but could not record an out. Tom Rawski stopped the bleeding by working four shutout innings.

Southern Indiana is now 10-7.

The Rangers now head to Florida for six non-conference games.