ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- The Washburn baseball team opened MIAA Tournament play with a 6-5 extra innings victory at Missouri Western on Thursday, April 30, taking game one in a best-of-three series with the Griffons.
 
WU (31-18) took an early 2-0 lead in the top of the third behind RBI singles from Parker Gibson and Riley Krane, but saw the game tied in the bottom half off a two-run MWSU home run.
 
In the top of the fourth, WU regained the lead when Corey Gragg's bloop single into right scored Tanner Triggs, but it was short lived as MWSU scored three runs in the bottom half to make it 5-3 in favor of the Griffons.
 
That deficit shrunk to one (5-4) in the top of the fifth as the Ichabods took advantage of two singles, a balk and a walk to load the bases before Triggs worked the second free pass of the inning to pick up an RBI as Krane came home.
 
After a scoreless sixth, Krane led off the seventh for WU with a triple into the left field corner and came home to tie it, 5-5, as Kyle Carnahan sliced an RBI single into left in the next at-bat.
 
In extras, Triggs reached on a fielder's choice, moving to second on an errant throw before Wes Jones replaced him as a pinch runner.  From there, Matt Sutliffe picked up his first hit of the season in a key moment for the Ichabods, driving in Jones for the eventual game-winner with a single to left center.
 
MWSU put two runners on in the bottom of the tenth in a scoring threat, but the Ichabod defense held tough to secure the win.
 
Maustin Otterstatter threw five innings in the start, striking out three while giving up five runs (two earned) on eight hits before Tanner Kilmer (8-3) entered in the sixth.  Kilmer earned the win after tossing five innings, allowing just four hits and one walk.
 
Krane had three hits to lead the Ichabods while Gibson, Carnahan and Crimmins each had two hits.
 
Game two of the best-of-three MIAA Tournament series is Friday, May 2, Mo.  First pitch is set for 6 p.m.  The winner of the best-of-three series advances to the second round at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City, Kan., for the second weekend of play, May 7-9