The University of Wisconsin Superior plated six runs in an epic eighth-inning comeback to secure an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference doubleheader sweep over Crown College on Saturday afternoon, knocking off the Storm 7-3 and 8-6 at Ted Whereatt Field in Superior.

UW-Superior (9-19, 5-5 UMAC) scored six runs on six hits to complete a come-from-behind victory in game two. Entering the seventh inning with just one hit, the Yellowjackets used a pair of walks and a wild pitch to put runners on second and third for senior catcher Nik Mattson (Superior, Wis./Superior H.S.), who ripped a two-run single to left center to pull UWS within 5-2. After senior Chad Patko (Stone Lake, Wis./Hayward H.S.) took over on the mound with the bases loaded and forced a groundball doubleplay to end the eighth, the Yellowjackets went to work. Freshman Brandon Rolf (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater H.S.) and senior Greg Pitts (Chicago, Ill./Mount Carmel H.S.) led off the inning with back-to-back singles. After a sacrifice bunt off the bat of senior Kyle Bellin (Kimberly, Wis./Kimberly H.S.), Patko was intentionally walked before Crown ( ) turned the ball over to its bullpen. Camden Wiens uncorked a wild pitch on his first throw of the day, advancing all the runners a base. The Storm intentionally walked freshman Travis Miller (Whittier, Calif./La Serna H.S.) to re-load the bases and Wiens threw a second wild pitch to bring home the second run of the inning, pulling UWS within one. Sophomore pinch-hitter kept the train moving with a bloop single over the shortstop's head to bring home the tying run. After a sacrifice fly off the bat of sophomore Stephen Albertson (Stillwater, Minn/Stillwater H.S.) for the go-ahead run, Mattson brought home another run lining a single up the middle. Sophomore Jordan Berrios (Watertown, Minn./Watertown-Mayer H.S.) and Rolf continued the train moving, each adding an RBI hit before the inning was out.

While Crown touched up senior Brock McDermid (Pulaski, Wis./Pulaski H.S.) for a run in the top of the ninth, he shut the door for his first save of the season, securing the victory for Patko, who worked on the mound in both ends of the doubleheader. Right-fielder David Cruz launched a home run in the third for the Storm, slicing through strong winds on the day. After allowing just two hits in his first seven innings on the day, Gideon Dunn allowed two hits and five runs in his final one-third, finishing at 7.1 innings with five earned on four hits, striking out three.

UW-Superior 7, Crown 3
In a far-more-conventional game one victory for the Yellowjackets, Crown scored another first-inning run off senior Richard Vanden Branden (Neenah, Wis./St. Mary Central H.S.), but he eventually settled down to allowed three runs, two earned, on seven hits while striking out five in 5.2 innings. Rookie outfielder Cory Albertson (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater H.S.) drove in the first two runs of the day for UWS, first on a bases-loaded infield hit in the bottom of the first and then on a sacrifice fly in the third. The Storm would tie the game back at 2-2 with an RBI single off the bat of Hunter Foss in the fourth, but junior catcher Spencer Lawniczak (Pulaski, Wis./Pulaski H.S.) scored Albertson on an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth to give the Yellowjackets another lead. 

Four walks helped Crown tie the game at 3-3 in the top of the sixth as rookie Zach Bennett (Corona, Calif./Santiago H.S.) came on in relief of Vanden Branden, but Rolf led off the bottom of the inning with a single and eventually came around to score on a hit by Patko. UW-Superior loaded the bases on walks in the bottom of the seventh, and sophomore Matthew Boyde (Chanhassen, Minn./Minnetonka H.S.) ripped a bases-clearing double to right to give the Yellowjackets the cushion they needed. Patko, junior Ryan Rukavina (Duluth, Minn./Denfeld H.S.), and senior Grant Schneider (Circle Pines, Minn./Centennial H.S.) combined four four strikeouts in the final 2.2 hitless innings.

UP NEXT
UW-Superior won't have long to celebrate as the Yellowjackets take on Macalester College in a non-conference doubleheader on Sunday afternoon on the road in St. Paul, Minnesota. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.