UW-Eau Claire faced ninth-ranked UW-Whitewater in a baseball doubleheader at Carson Park, resulting in two hard-fought losses of 15-5 and 7-6 on Saturday.

The Blugolds fell to 13-9 overall and 6-4 in league play. Whitewater improved to 20-3, 12-0.

Despite UW-Eau Claire’s efforts, including Austin Curti’s solo home run in the second inning and a rally in the sixth, they could not close the gap.

In the seventh, UWEC’s Diego Caicedo and Will Johnson opened the inning with singles, and Kellen Smith drove in a run.

Curti led offensively with a home run, contributing two runs and one RBI, while Logan Scuglik reached base three times.

In the second game, UW-Eau Claire clawed back from an early deficit with a powerful sixth inning, featuring back-to-back home runs by John Digregorio and Will Johnson.

Digregorio added a two-run single that leveled the game.

UW-Eau Claire football coach Rob Erickson has named Phil Ockinga as the team’s new offensive coordinator.

Ockinga comes to Eau Claire after spending four seasons as the head coach and offensive coordinator at Peru State College. During his time with Bobcats, Peru State saw a shift in competitiveness as Ockinga held an overall record of 24-19.

“We are extremely excited to welcome Phil and his family to Eau Claire,” Erickson said. “Phil has spent over two decades either leading or assisting in elevating programs to new heights. Phil is a proven recruiter, passionate about the development of athletes, has run successful offenses for over a decade and brings head coaching experience to the staff.

“Coach Ockinga understands what it takes to win, and his experiences will add tremendous value to our program in a variety of ways.”

Prior to Peru State, Ockinga spent five seasons as an assistant coach at South Dakota.

Before South Dakota, Ockinga held positions at Western Illinois and Hutchinison Community College.