The spring semester finished with exams in mid May, but the season for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's baseball team was still in the thick of a race to the College World Series.

Going into the final series of the regular season against Butler, the Panthers needed to sweep a series of the Bulldogs to ensure the second seeding in the Horizon League Tournament.

The first game of the series saw a tie at 3 through six innings. Coming up to the plate, following a walk of junior Kyle Silver to load the bases, senior Matt Curran jacked a grand slam out of the park. From there, the Panthers never looked back, and won 12-5.

Butler could not get a hold of the Panthers the next day either, with UWM going on to defeat the Bulldogs in a doubleheader and won the first game. Senior Aaron Sorenson was a master on the hill in the first game, scattering two runs, six hits and a walk over eight full innings in an 8-3 win.

Sorenson also tied a school record with 13 strikeouts, further strengthening his position as the Panthers' ace. Senior Joe Nowicki went on one of his signature tears, going 5 for 5 and knocking in five runs, scoring three of his own and leading the Panther charge in the final game of the series.

Nowicki broke a 2-2 tie with an RBI double, and later scored on a hit by junior Rob Brockel. Nowicki hit three doubles and two long balls, setting a career high with 14 total bases in just five at-bats. The Panthers went on to win, 9-5.

With the series sweep of Butler in the bag, second place in the Horizon League was set. To get to the NCAA Regionals, and eventually the College World Series, UWM would have to avoid losing two games in the Horizon League Tournament.

Horizon hopes dashed

That goal took a serious hit on the first day of the tournament in Fairborn, Ohio. Down 5-0 in the sixth inning of the first game against Wright State, the Panthers scored three runs to cut the Raiders' lead to 2.

After that, it was all Wright State. In each of the next two innings, WSU smashed in seven runs, blowing out the Panthers with a final score of 20-3. The losing pitcher for the Panthers was Rick Cavaiani. Cavaiani started slow, giving up five runs in the first two innings, but he settled into a groove.

Cavaiani pitched four straight scoreless innings, allowing the Panthers' bats to get back on track. However, the seventh inning began with Cavaiani giving up three runs, and Wright State blew the contest wide open from there.

In a win-or-go-home situation, the Panthers found themselves against the odds. The opponent: Cleveland State, a team nearing the end of a very disappointing season, looking to play the spoiler in the conference tourney. Coming into the game with a dismal 10-41 record, the Vikings were looking to make a dent in the No. 2-ranked team.

UWM was up to the challenge.

Led by the hot bat of Jesse Hart, the Panthers turned a scoreless game in the bottom of the third into a lead they would never relinquish. The Vikings tried to put up a fight in the seventh inning, scoring two runs with only one out on the scoreboard. However, in true Cleveland State fashion, the Vikings collectively shrugged, sighed and gave up on the game. The Panthers scored in every inning for the rest of the game, dropping the Vikings, 8-3.

Championship game holds key

UWM's third game in the league tournament pitted them against the regular season champions, the University of Illinois-Chicago in a showdown of the top two Horizon League teams. UIC played a game that morning, and were much fresher than the Panthers, who had just finished their battle with Cleveland State.

Milwaukee took a three-run lead into the bottom of the third inning, only to see starter Aaron Sorenson give up four runs on three doubles and a fielder's choice groundout.

UWM came back in the top of the fourth to tie it at 4 on a Jeremy Wilson double. UIC scored another run on Sorenson with an RBI triple by Larry Gempp. The lead changed two more times in the fifth inning.

The Flames were paced by pitcher Zach Peterson, who allowed six runs on nine hits to the suddenly cold Milwaukee bats. Peterson pitched the complete game, and the Flames went on to score seven more runs to knock UWM out of the tournament, 14-6.

After season, outfielder honored

While the season ended abruptly, the Panthers accolades were not finished. Senior Mike Goetz, who led the NCAA in batting average throughout the season, became the first Panther to win the NCAA batting title, posting a .493 average.

Not only was that a Panthers record, but he also posted new school records in hits (111), doubles (23), triples (tied at 6), walks (tied at 41), total bases (155) and on-base percentage (.579).

Goetz was selected by the Brewers in the Major League Baseball amateur draft.

Goetz made another splash as well on the national stage by being selected to the Louisville Slugger All-America Team, and then the American Baseball Coaches Association All-America First Team, the first Panther to be on an All-America team.

The Panthers baseball team has a similar situation to the men's basketball team, as the bulk of the team's scoring and pitching has now graduated.

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