KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- An extra innings rally kept the Washburn baseball team's postseason run alive on Friday, May 8 in an MIAA Tournament elimination game.  The Ichabods scored three runs in the bottom of the 10th to defeat Central Missouri, 4-3, at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.
 
Down to its last chance, David Gauntt led off the inning with a single through the left side, sending Connor Crimmins to the plate.  Facing a 0-2 count, Crimmins drove a pitch over the left field wall for a game tying, two-run home run.  The rally continued with Dylan Turpin reached first on a two-out, pinch hit single before Wes Jones replaced him on the basepaths.  After stealing second, Jones came around to score with Payton Soicher singled down the right field line for a walkoff RBI single.
 
Neither team put a hit on the board until the fifth, when UCM hit a two-out double, though Mike Hefferan got a ground ball out to get out of the inning.
 
Scoreless through six and a half innings of play, WU broke the tie with its first hit of the day in the bottom of the seventh.  Cole Gardner reached on an error to lead off the inning after his ground ball was mishandled by the first baseman, and after taking second on Payton Soicher's sacrifice bunt, came around to score from second when Riley Krane blooped a single into left center.
 
UCM threatened with runners on the corners in the eighth, but a hard liner was knocked down by Tanner Johnson before recording the unassisted putout to close the inning.
 
The Mules finally broke through in the top of the ninth, using an RBI single with two outs and runners on the corners to tie it, 1-1.
 
After a scoreless bottom of the ninth, UCM took a 3-1 lead in extras with two runs in the 10th, but WU overcame the deficit with three runs in the bottom half to win it.
 
Mike Hefferan threw nine innings in the start for WU, scattering eight hits and giving up just one run on the day.  Hefferan struck out three before Hank Wellborn entered in extra innings.  Wellborn (4-2) earned the win with one full inning of relief.
 
Held two just hits through the first nine, WU had four in the final inning en route to the victory.  Crimmins had a hit, a walk and two RBI in the game to lead the team, while Gibson, Krane, Gauntt, Turpin and Soicher added individual hits.
 
WU will take on either No. 1 seed Missouri Southern or No. 2 seed Emporia State in an elimination game on Saturday at 11 a.m.  The two schools play Friday at 5 p.m., with the winner advancing into the MIAA Tournament finals. The Ichabods dropped a 10-7 contest to the Lions in the quarterfinals on Thursday.