Afternoon State Sports Briefs - UW-La Crosse eliminated from NCAA baseball tourney

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WHITEWATER - UW-LaCrosse was eliminated today from the NCAA Division Three baseball tournament.

The second seeded Eagles were upset by UW-Whitewater, 10-7, at the Midwest Regional at Whitewater. It was an elimination game for both teams, since they previously had one loss in the double elimination format. Fourth seeded Whitewater ended six straight losses to La Crosse. The Warhawks were leading 10-1 in the ninth inning when starter Kyle Stewart gave up six runs. He ended up with seven strikeouts. La Crosse was the WIAC regular season champion, ending with a record of 34-11. Whitewater is 31-16. The Warhawks will play either Saint Norbert or Aurora tonight in another elimination game. Five teams are left in the regional, and Whitewater and Saint Norbert are the only Wisconsin schools still alive. The tournament runs into the weekend, and the winner advances to the Division III finals near Appleton next week.

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The Milwaukee Brewers will open Interleague play tonight, when they host the Minnesota Twins in the first of three contests this weekend. The defending National League Central champion Brewers are stumbling at 16-22, with the NL’s fourth worst record. The Crew is just 9-9 at home, after going 57-24 at Miller Park a year ago. Manager Ron Roenicke says the Brewers need to find a spark on offense. They’ve lost four of their last five and in those four losses, they scored just eight total runs while batting .152 with runners-in-scoring-position. Tonight, right hander Marco Estrada will start against Twins’ southpaw Scott Diamond. Estrada is 0-2 with a 4.20 ERA. He escaped with a no decision last day, when he gave up two solo homers in six innings against the Chicago Cubs. Diamond is 2-0, after being called up from Triple “A” Rochester last week. He struck out 10 last Sunday against Toronto, and has thrown 14 scoreless innings in a pair of starts. The Twins have the Majors’ worst record at 12-26, but they’re coming off a pair of wins over Detroit. Minnesota has hit a pair of homers in each of its last two games, despite hitting an American Leaguelow of 25 homers this season.

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After almost a month off, NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series resumes tonight. The North Carolina Education Lottery 200 will be run at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Johnny Sauter of Necedah is the only Wisconsin driver entered. He’s 16th in the point standings with four of 22 races completed for the season. The Sprint Cup drivers are also in Charlotte for their annual All Star Weekend. Travis Kvapil of Janesville will compete for a spot in the All Star Race tomorrow night. Matt Kenseth of Cambridge and Paul Menard of Eau Claire are among 20 already in the field. Meanwhile, the Nationwide Series drivers are in Newton, Iowa for Sunday’s running of the Pioneer High Bred 250. Qualifying is set for tomorrow. Beloit-born Danica Patrick is entered, along with Tim Schendel of Sparta.

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UW-Milwaukee freshman Aaron Dillon has been named the Horizon League Newcomer of the Year in men’s outdoor track and field. And Milwaukee’s Lauren Grant received the same honor on the women’s side. Also, Pete Corfeld of the Panthers was named the men’s Coach of the Year. Grant was named the top women’s freshman after winning the 400 meters at the recent Horizon League meet. Dillon was honored after he won the triple jump and placed second in the 110 meter hurdles, and third in both the high jump and long jump. He was also named the top newcomer during the indoor season this winter. Corfeld received the men’s coaching honor after the Panthers won their ninth straight outdoor title, and 18th consecutive overall crown.

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