The top-seeded Wright State baseball team advanced to Friday's winner's bracket game after a 4-3 victory on Thursday afternoon over No. 4 seed Milwaukee in the opening game of the 2021 Horizon League Baseball Championship.
 
The Raiders (33-11) will face No. 2 UIC at 2 p.m. on Friday afternoon at Nischwitz Stadium.
 
On Thursday, Wright State used a three-run third inning to break open a scoreless game, adding what proved to be the winning run in the fourth before Milwaukee responded with three runs in the fifth and had the tying run on in the ninth before the Raiders shut the door.
 
Justin McConnell and Damon Dues led off the bottom of the third with back-to-back singles to bring Horizon League Player of the Year Quincy Hamilton to the plate. Hamilton laced a line shot down the left field line past Panther left fielder Jack Cavanaugh and to the wall, scoring both runners on Hamilton's triple. Moments later, Tyler Black's single into center field plated Hamilton for the third run of the frame.
 
Konner Piotto opened the fourth with a single before a McConnell walk and an intentional walk to Hamilton set up a bases loaded, one out at-bat for Black, who sent a long, sacrifice fly into right-center field to plate Piotto and up the lead to four.
 
In the fifth, Milwaukee sent nine men to the plate and tallied three hits as part of the three-run inning, keyed by a two-run single from Jack Kraus, to end the afternoon for Raider starter Jake Schrand. Reliever Jake Shirk came on with the bases loaded and two outs, shutting the door on the inning with a strikeout of Jack Cavanaugh to end the frame.
 
Wright State had chances to extend the lead, leaving the bases loaded in the sixth and stranding a pair of runners to end the seventh, but held the one-run lead going to the ninth. Milwaukee's Mike Ferri opened the top of the ninth with a double off the top of the left field wall and was bunted over to third with one out. Tristan Haught came on strand Ferri, first getting Nick Winter to ground out to McConnell at third base before freezing Mitchell Buban with a strikeout looking to send the Raiders into the winners' bracket.
 
Hamilton, McConnell and Zane Harris all had two hits, with Harris, McConnell and Alex Alders all tallying doubles, while Hamilton had the lone triple of the afternoon.
 
Shirk improved to 7-0 after 3.1 innings out of the bullpen for the Raiders, allowing just one hit with one strikeout, relieving starter Jake Shrand, who tossed 4.2 innings with five strikeouts, five hits and three runs (two earned). Haught tallied his second save of the season to close the door.