OTTAWA, Kan. - The Kansas Wesleyan offense came alive in the top of the ninth inning as the No. 17 ranked Coyotes put eight runs on the board to come away with a 12-5 win over the No. 20 ranked Ottawa University Braves on Friday at Alumni Park.
It was a back and forth affair over the first seven innings before the Coyotes broke a 3-3 stalemate on a RBI single by Chris Finocchario before blowing the game open in the ninth behind an eight-run outburst.
It was scoreless until the third when the Coyotes put two on the board. Joe Finder started the rally reaching on a walk and then scored on Niko Olson's double. Carter Allen drove in the second run of the inning with a ground out.
Ottawa got on the board with a run in the bottom of the third, but the Coyotes regained the 2-run margin in the fourth. Blake Dale doubled and then traded places with Logan Arndt to make it 3-1.
It was 3-1 until the bottom of the sixth when Ottawa tied it starting the inning off with three straight hits, then a RBI fielder's choice and a delayed double steal to tie it 3-3.
Catcher Jackson Harriger reached on an error to start the KWU half of the eighth and courtesy runner Lakin Franz would score on a single by Finocchario after stealing second and third base in the inning.
Logan Arndt singled to lead off the big ninth inning for the Coyotes and then scored on a single by Tyler Nordyke. The Coyotes loaded the bases on a single by Olson and a walk to Harriger. The Coyotes pushed another run across when Garrett Garfield walked and another when Fernando Ruvalcaba was hit by a pitch. A wild pitch yielded another run before Finocchario followed with a RBI single and Logan Arndt followed with a 2-run single and Finder brought in another run on a ground-out.
Ottawa scored twice in the bottom of the ninth, but could not add any more runs.
Arndt had three of KWU's 11 hits in the game and drove in three runs. Olson, Finocchario, Dale and Nordyke had two hits each.
Starter Shaw Lee had another solid outing going six and a third allowing three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts, but did not get the decision. Riley Gwin got the win pitching the final two and two-thirds allowing two runs with two strikeouts.