By Tommy McGowan, UWEC Sports Information

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) - The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire baseball team dropped the series to UW-Platteville on Thursday afternoon, 7-2 and 11-3. The doubleheader marked Eau Claire's home opener for the 2021 season.

Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score | Photos

Platteville went up 2-0 in game one, but the Blugolds got on the board in the bottom of the second off an RBI single by Will Jilek (Sr.-Hudson, WI), scoring Anthony Pogodzinski (Fr.-Eau Claire, WI/North).

Jilek would again knock home a run in the seventh, with an RBI single to left field that scored Henry Pitsch (Fr.-Madison, WI/West).

Despite two more opportunities at the plate in the bottom of the eighth and ninth, Eau Claire couldn't close the gap on the Pioneers, with the final score reading 7-2.

The Blugolds finished with five hits in the first game, coming from Jilek, Pogodzinski, Pitsch, Cade Mueller (Fr.-Coal City, IL) and Elyjah Johnson (Fr.-Eau Claire, WI/North).

In game two, Eau Claire's first run came in the bottom of the first. Logan Matson got on base after being hit by pitch and eventually took home on a double steal with Pogodzinski.

A big third inning by the Pioneers put the Blugolds in a deficit they couldn't climb out of. They would notch one more run in the bottom of the third and sixth innings.

Charley Griffin (So.-River Falls,WI) got the start in game two for UWEC, while David Janssen (Fr.-Lino Lakes, MN/Centennial) came on in relief and struck out five batters.

The Blugolds will be back in action this weekend, as they travel to Menomonie to meet up with UW-Stout on Saturday. Follow the action on Blugold Game Day.