TULSA, Okla. -- Fourth-seeded Northern Colorado wasted little introducing themselves to Summit League postseason play, knocking off top-seeded Omaha 4-2 in the program's debut Wednesday in the opening game of the 2024 Baseball Championship at J.L. Johnson Stadium.
UNC righthander Jake Storey went a career-long 7.2 innings, scattering seven hits and allowing only two runs to earn his third win of the campaign, while right fielder Carter Monda led the Bears' offensive attack with three hits and two RBI.
The Bears opened the scoring in the third on a RBI-single from Monda, taking advantage of an error on a sacrifice bunt by Jackson Romero that allowed Craig Kenny to move from first to third. Monda then drove him in on what was the eighth pitch of his second at-bat against Omaha starter Caleb Riedel.
The Mavericks wasted little time getting that run back as they squared things up at 1-1 on a RBI-single from Matt Goetzmann. That would be the only earned run Omaha could muster off of Storey, who finished with the longest outing by a Bears' starter this season.
The Bears pushed across three decisive runs in the fifth on a trio of two-out hits. Monda started the scoring with an infield single and was followed by an RBI-double from Kai Wagner down the right field line. Designated hitter Garrett Fisher capped the scoring with a sharp single to center field.
Omaha would get one run back in the eighth when Matt Goetzmann delivered a two-out, RBI-single after Storey was replaced by Jack Tuttle. Henry Zipay had opened the frame with his third hit of the game, moved to second on a passed ball then came around to score when Goetzmann dut the deficit to 4-2.
Tuttle would keep the Mavericks off the scoreboard in the ninth as he registered his first save of the season.
Pitcher of Record
Win – Storey (3-4): 7.0 IP, 7 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts
Loss – Riedel (6-4): 6.0 IP, 6 hits, 4 earned runs, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts
Notable Notes
• Northern Colorado is making its first appearance in the postseason event since joining the Summit League as an affiliate member prior to the 2021-22 season.
• The Bears' win marked just the fourth time in the last 25 tournaments that the No. 4 seed won its opening round game.
• UNC third baseman Kai Wagner went 2-for-5 and now has multiple hits in four straight games. He has 18 total multiple-hit games on the season.
• Omaha first baseman Jack Trout and shortstop Henry Zipay each had three hits to account for six of the Mavericks' nine hits.
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Up Next
Northern Colorado will play the winner of the contest between No. 2 seed North Dakota State and No. 3 seed Oral Roberts at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday, while Omaha will play the loser of that contest earlier in the day with first pitch slated for 12 p.m. CT.
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