WHITEWATER, Wis. — Luke Wechsler shut out the Centre Colonels across 7.2 innings of work to lead Cal Lutheran baseball to a dominant 7-0 victory in its opening game of the NCAA Championship on Friday afternoon. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
Wechsler (W) led the Kingsmen (29-14) to a 1-0 start in the dance with a dominant performance on the mound. He gave up four hits and four walks while striking out three, including a stretch where he retired 12 straight batters. It is his third appearance this year allowing no runs. 

The Kingsmen scored in six of the nine innings and outhit the Colonels (34-12) 15 to 4 in a successful and consistent offensive day. They wasted no time establishing a lead, as Lucas Danielewicz drove in the game's first run with an RBI single in the first. Gordon Richardson returned to the starting lineup after missing the last 16 games with a hand injury and made an immediate impact, as he drove in Josh Quinn, who hit his first of two doubles, to make it 2-0 in the second. 

Kai Caranto added a run after he drew a bases-loaded walk in the fourth, and Richardson and Noah Matsumoto both tallied RBIs in the fifth to break the game open at 5-0. Blake Wink hit a solo shot for his fifth homer of the season in the eighth and Matsumoto added an RBI single in the ninth to put on the finishing touches. It was a near-perfect performance from the Kingsmen as they cruised into the winner's bracket of regional.
 
THE NUMBERS
- Wechsler (7-4): 7.2 IP, 4 H, 4 BB, 3 K
- Quinn: 3-5, 2 2B, 2 R (reached base safely in 12 of last 13 games)
- Wink: 3-4, HR, 2B, R, RBI, BB 
- Danielewicz: 2-5, 2B, RBI 
- Matsumoto: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, BB
- Richardson: 2-3, 2 RBI, BB

UP NEXT 
The Kingsmen advance to the winner's bracket where they will face host school and No. 5-ranked UW-Whitewater (36-8) tomorrow, Saturday, May 18, at 12:30 p.m. PST.