HORIZON LEAGUE Parks' RBI wins for Penguins

Despite an unlucky start, a key hit led to an 11th-inning win over the Panthers.
INDIANAPOLIS -- If Brent Parks is smiling, that must mean Wisconsin-Milwaukee is hurting.
For the second time in less than a week, the Youngstown State outfielder had the game-winning RBI as the Penguins defeated the Panthers, 4-3, in 11 innings Thursday at the Horizon League Championships at Victory Field.
Parks hit a game-winning sacrifice fly against Milwaukee last Saturday that clinched YSU's second-place finish in the league and a first-round bye in the tournament.
With his clutch hitter at the plate, coach Mike Florak said he knew the right guy was up in that situation.
"Brent's come through in the clutch a number of times for us," Florak said. "He's a spark off the bench, or whether he is starting, he keeps the same attitude and just fights the whole time. Brent's just a battler. He got it done again."
Parks entered the game as a pinch runner in the seventh for Dustin Thomas, then stepped to the plate with two outs and Justin Banks on second in the 11th. Parks hit a single off Rick Cavaiani into center and Banks beat the throw, giving YSU its third consecutive opening-round in the league tournament.
"I was definitely thinking I need to get a hit or get on base," Parks said. "I've got great guys behind me so if I didn't get a hit, or if I got a hit and didn't score a run, I wasn't worried about it because I knew somebody else would pick me up. I did know coming in I needed to get a hit and I just got lucky."
Comeback
For most of the afternoon, it seemed as if luck was against the Penguins (29-25).
Milwaukee (23-30) jumped on Justin Thomas for two runs in the first inning on a homer by Blake Kangas.
After double plays ended their first two at-bats, YSU broke through in the third.
Mike Turjanica tripled off the right-field wall to open the inning and scored on a single by Josh Page. After a sacrifice bunt by J.D. Hannan, Page scored on a Brandon Caipen triple. With the infield back, Erich Diedrich grounded out to second, scoring Caipen and putting the Penguins ahead 3-2.
Milwaukee tied the score in the fifth when Mike Goetz beat out an infield single and scored on a double just inside the right-field line by Brooks Graff.
Both teams missed chances to score the go-ahead run.
In the seventh, eighth and ninth, YSU had runners at second base with just one out, but failed to score.
Milwaukee left runners on in the eighth and stranded a runner at third in the 10th when Charles Schultz went deep into the hole at short and threw a one-hopper to retire Kangas.
Junior reliever Kevin Libeg worked out of that 10th-inning jam. Libeg (4-3) replaced Thomas in the ninth and allowed just one hit in three innings.
Thomas threw a season-high 132 pitches in eight innings.
"Kevin didn't have his greatest stuff, either, and they just both gutted it out and found a way to win," he said. "That's what your veterans do for you. I was really proud of both of them because they weren't at the top of their game."
Cavaiani (2-9) suffered the loss despite pitching a complete game. He scattered 11 hits and struck out just three.
The Penguins will play today at 8 p.m. in a semifinal game.
"I think that's a great boost for us," Parks said. "That's exactly what we needed, a tough game. We came out on top and I think that is just going to fuel our fire for the next couple of games. We are in a good situation right now."