WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Freshman Josh Barker (Windsor HS, Severance, Colo.) scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning Wednesday to give Augustana a 5-4 win over Neumann at Chain of Lakes Park. The Vikings wrapped up play at the Russ Matt Invitational with a 7-1 record. They'll return to Florida for four games as part of the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic from March 7-10.

 

With the game tied at 4-4 going to the bottom of the ninth, Will Troia (Boylan HS, Rockford, Ill.) led off as a pinch-hitter and was hit by a Nick Glebocki offering. Barker came in to run for him. A walk to Nick Mosele (University HS, Bloomington, Ill.) and a Drew Davis (Illini Bluffs HS, Mapleton, Ill.) sacrifice put runners at second and third and Tyler Nunez (Byron HS, Byron, Ill.) was walked intentionally to load the bases. With Gunnar Haskins (Alleman HS, Moline, Ill.) at the plate, Glebocki's 0-1 pitch got away, allowing Barker to race home with the game-winner.
 
Augustana gave starter Chris Refka (Palatine HS, Palatine, Ill.) a 4-0 lead with two runs in the first and one each in the second and third.
 
After Refka set the Knights (3-4) down in the top of the first, Nunez reached on a one-out error in the bottom half. Jake Huber (Lockport HS, Homer Glen, Ill.) followed with a walk and Ryan Grannemann (McHenry West HS, McHenry, Ill.) and Mitchell Owens (Moline HS, Moline, Ill.) each had RBI singles off Neumann starter David Alvarez.
 
Mosele and Davis had consecutive one-out doubles to produce another run in the second and Grannemann knocked Alvarez out with an RBI single in the third.
 
Refka held the Knights scoreless through five, but they got to him for three runs in the sixth. Andrew La Rosa's one-out single to left plated Zach Ray. One out later, Tre'Zhan Selby had a two-run single to center, but Sam Beyer's (Legend HS, Parker, Colo.) throw cut down Joe Nepi at the plate to keep the Vikings on top 4-3.
 
Neumann tied it in the seventh on a John Lindeborn double and an RBI single by Ray.
 
Sam Cregan (Air Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo.) came out of the Viking pen to start the eighth and gave up two-out singles to Nepi and Selby. Coach Greg Wallace called on John Hayes (Cherry Creek HS, Greenwood Village, Colo.) and the sophomore right-hander coaxed a John Schoelkopf pop out to end the inning.
 
After a leadoff single and an error in the top of the ninth, Hayes induced two straight groundouts to Nunez at second to leave the go-ahead run stranded at third.
 
Hayes picked up his second win in as many decisions this spring. Glebocki (1-2) took the loss for the Knights.
 
Grannemann, hitting .533 on the year, continued to feast on Florida pitching, going 2-for-4 with two knocked in. Owens was 2-for-3 with an RBI. Huber drew a pair of walks and scored twice. Lindeborn led the Neumann attack with a 4-for-5 performance.