WHITEWATER, Wis. – Webster University will get to continue its baseball season for at least one more week as the top-seeded Gorloks picked up an 11-2 win over No. 3 seeded North Central (Ill.) College in the winner-take-all game of the 2019 NCAA Whitewater Regional at Prucha Field at James B. Miller Stadium to advance to next weekend's Super Regional round of the NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament.
 
Webster, who entered Sunday's final day of the four-team double elimination regional tournament as the undefeated team, were forced to play a winner-take-all game on Sunday evening as the Cardinals picked up a 14-9 win in the first game of Sunday's championship round. The loss in the Sunday's opener snapped Webster's eight game win streak as their last loss came on May 3 at then top-ranked Concordia-Chicago, 1-0.
 
The Gorloks will now face the winner of the Chicago, Ill., Regional that is being hosted by Concordia-Chicago in next weekend's Super Regional at a location to be announced. CU-Chicago will play a winner-take-all game on Monday afternoon against Baldwin Wallace.  
 
With Sunday's split, Webster's record moves to 35-11 on the season, while North Central closes the 2019 season with a 34-13 overall record.
 
In the winner-take-all game, Webster turned to junior pitcher Matt Mulhearn (Chicago Heights, Ill./Marian Catholic) to help the Gorloks rebound from its setback in Sunday's first championship round. Mulhearn, who started Webster's Whitewater Regional Tournament opener against Bethany Lutheran and threw 121 pitches in seven innings of work in the Gorloks 11-2 win, would toss seven innings on Sunday evening as he scattered four hits and allow one run, while walking one and striking out six to pick up his second win of the tournament and improve his record to 12-2 on the year.
 
For his efforts on the mound, Mulhearn was named the MVP of the Whitewater Regional as he went 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in two appearances in the regional tournament. In 14 innings of work, Mulhearn threw a total of 236 pitches and allowed nine hits and three runs (three earned runs), while walking two and fanning 14, including eight strikeouts in the opener against Bethany Lutheran.
 
Mulhearn's pitching was backed up by a strong offensive effort as the Gorloks recorded 15 hits, including hitting three doubles, a triple and two home runs and scoring runs in six of the nine innings, including scoring two runs each in the second, third and fourth innings.
 
Joining Mulhearn on the Whitewater Regional All-Tournament Team from Webster were junior All-American first baseman Kyler Kent (Pottsboro, Texas/Pottsboro), sophomore third baseman Ben Swords (Freeport, Ill./Freeport) and sophomore shortstop Matt Staker (El Cajon, Calif./Saint Augustine). In the tournament, Kent hit .375 with six hits, four runs scored, two doubles, a home run and 4 RBI, while Swords hit .647 with 11 hits, five runs scored, three doubles, one home run, 11 RBI and Staker hit .400 with six hits, four runs scored and 6 RBI.
 
In the winner-take-all game against North Central, who was the champion from the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, Swords went 4-for-5 at the plate with a career-high tying 5 RBI, while junior centerfielder Aron Hopp (Lincoln, Ill./Lincoln College) went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and Kent and senior second baseman Danny Strohm (St. Louis, Mo./Greenville University) each had two hits and combined for 3 RBI. In the win, eight of the nine Gorlok starters had at least one hit in game, while eight of the nine starters scored at least one run in the win.
 
After getting outscored 14-9 in Sunday's first championship game, the Gorloks, who ended the first game by scoring eight runs over the final three innings, kept their hot bats going in the top of the first of the second title game as Swords drilled a two-out solo home run over the fence in center off of NCC starter Patrick Schaefer to give the Gorloks a 1-0 lead.
 
The Gorloks lead grew to 3-0 in the top of the second as after Schaefer opened the inning by recording two outs, junior catcher Joe Swanson (Park Ridge, Ill./Maine West) reached on a single up the middle, before moving to second on a bunt single by Staker and would score on an RBI single to right center by Strohm and would add a second run later in the inning on a throwing error by Schaefer on a ball hit by Hopp.
 
NCC, who advanced to Sunday's championship round by picking up a 13-4 win over Wisconsin-Whitewater in an elimination game on Saturday evening, dropped WU's lead 3-1 in the bottom of the second on a single, a walk and an RBI double to left field off the bat of Ryan Scott, who was one of two North Central players named to the All-Tournament Team.
 
The Gorloks added two more runs in the third thanks to a 2-run homer to the left of the scoreboard in right field to give Webster a 5-1 lead. The homer by Kent was his sixth of the season.
 
Webster would tally two more runs in the fourth inning on a 2-run single through the left side by Swords that scored both Staker, who was hit by a pitch leading off the inning and Hopp, who reached on a single to left.
 
From that point, Webster turned the game over to Mulhearn as would retire 15 of the final 18 batters he faced from the third to the seventh inning, including ending his night by recording back-to-back strikeouts on Scott and Tyler Christofaro to end the seventh.
 
In the sixth, Webster extended its lead to 8-1 on an RBI single by Swords, which plated Hopp, who had reached on a single, moved to second on a throwing error by NCC pitcher Tyler Jones and reached third on a fly out to center by senior rightfielder Nate Tholl (Tinley Park, Ill./John A. Logan CC).
 
The Gorloks lead grew to 11-1 in the top of the eighth thanks to four hits. In the inning, Strohm reached on a double, moved to third on a single by Hopp and Tholl followed with a 2-run triple down the right field line. After Tholl's triple, Swords would then hit a double down the left field line that scored Tholl for the third run of the inning. Swords would then reach third on a wild and after junior leftfielder A.J. Smith (DuQuoin, Ill./DuQuoin) walk, Kent hit into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.
 
In the bottom of the eighth, the Cardinals would plate a run against senior hurler Adrian Santiago (Chicago, Ill./Oakton CC) on an RBI single by Jeremy Quade. Santiago replaced Mulhearn on the mound to open the frame.
 
The Cardinals also threatened in the bottom of the ninth as Joe Rizzo reached on a one-out double to right center and after Santiago struck out Scott, he would then load the bases thanks to hitting Zach Sefcik with a pitch and allowing an infield single to Michael Stoltz, before sealing the win on a fielder's choice grounder to Swords at third.
 
Schaefer (1-3) took the loss on the mound for NCC as he pitched 2.1 innings and allowed five hits and five runs (three earned), while striking out three and walking none.
 
The Cardinals finished the game with eight hits, including two hits apiece by Rizzo and Stoltz.
 
Both teams left a combined 14 runners on base as Webster stranded six and NCC left eight on base.
 
The Cardinals defense committed three errors and turned two double plays, while Webster had two errors and turned on double play to push its season total to 40, which is fifth most on the school's single season chart.
Meanwhile, in Sunday's first game of the championship round, North Central jumped out to a 14-1 lead heading to the bottom of the seventh thanks to 14 hits, including two home runs from Rob Marinec and a total of seven extra base hits in the 14-9 win.
 
The 14 runs allowed by the Gorloks were the most they allowed in a game since allowing 17 runs to Greenville in a 17-15 loss to the Panthers in the 2017 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament.
 
NCC would jump in front 3-0 in the top of the first thanks to a 3-run homer by Marinec off of junior Dakota Borman (Freeport, Ill./Highland CC), who earned the start on the mound in the first game.
 
The Gorloks would get one of those runs back in the bottom of the first thanks to a single by Hopp, a double by Tholl and an RBI groundout by Swords off of NCC hurler Luke Lamm.
 
North Central would increase its lead to 7-1 in the second inning thanks to sacrifice fly by Quade and a 3-run homer over the left field fence by Marinec off of sophomore pitcher Andrew Padilla (Burbank, Ill./Reavis), who replaced Borman after he allowed a leadpff double in the second to Scott. Marinec was also named to the All-Tournament Team for the Cardinals.
The Cardinals lead grew to 8-1 in the fifth thanks to an RBi double by Rizzo and NCC added three more runs in the sixth to push its lead to 11-1.
 
In the seventh, North Central added three more runs, including two on a 2-run single by John Carmody off of junior Garrett Davis (Geneva, Ill./Elgin CC), who replaced Padilla on the mound to open the seventh to take a 14-1 lead.
 
The Gorloks would then begin a comeback as they used a double by Strohm and an RBI by Hopp to plate a run and cut NCC's lead to 14-2.  
 
In the eighth, Webster struck for four runs thanks to RBI singles by Kent, Strohm, an RBI double by freshman catcher Zach Goodman (Greenwood Village, Colo./Arapahoe) and an RBI groundout by Staker.
 
Webster would make things interesting in the bottom of the ninth against reliever Matt Bebar as they recorded five hits and scored three runs to cut the Cardlinals lead to 14-9. In the inning, freshman rightfielder Brandon Dryer (Centennial, Colo./Arapahoe) led off with a double to right center, moved to third on a single by Swords and after back-to-back strikeouts by Smith and Kent, senior designated hitter Christian Dahncke (Vienna, lll./Southeastern Illinois) reached on an infield single to load the bases. Goodman would then follow with an RBI single up the middle and then Staker greeted Jordan Litke with a 2-run single to left field to complete the game's scoring.
 
In the first game, Webster collected 16 hits, including three from Strohm and two apiece from Hopp, Swords, Dahncke and Goodman. For the game, 10 Gorloks recorded a hit and seven Gorloks scored at least one run.
 
The Cardinals offense was paced by three hits from Carmody, while Quade, Marinec, Scott, Rizzo and Colin Weilbacher each had two hits in the win. Additionally, Marinec had six RBI and was intentionally walked three times and Weilbacher added three RBI for North Central.  
 
Lamm (5-1) earned the win for North Central as he pitched 7.1 innings and allowed nine hits and five runs, while walking two and striking out two.
 
Borman (3-2) took the loss for the Gorloks as he pitched 1-plus innings and allowed three hits and four runs, while walking one and fanning one. Webster's bullpen tossed eight innings and allowed 11 hits and 10 runs, while walking six and striking out six, including Padilla striking out four in his five innings of work.
 
The Cardinals defense turned two double plays and left eight runners on base, while Webster left nine runners on base.
 
Other members of the Whitewater Regional All-Tournament Team were Bethany Lutheran's Grant Beecher, UW-Whitewater's Cal Aldridge, UW-Whitewater's Alex Doud and UW-Whitewater's Westin Muir.

The Gorloks will open Super Regional play on Friday, May 24 at a site and time to be determined following the conclusion of Monday's game between Concordia-Chicago and Baldwin Wallace in the championship game of the Chicago, Ill., Regional. The super regional round will be a best-of-three format with the team that wins two of the three games advancing to the Division III World Series on May 31-June 5 at Perfect Game Field at Veteran's Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.