GRAND CHUTE, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater showed all season it could beat team with a power-driven offense.

    The Warhawks proved Friday they could win with some small ball in the opening game of the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship at Fox Cities Stadium. Whitewater manufactured some runs and finally broke open a tight game in an 8-3 victory over Trinity (Conn.) College.

    Whitewater (42-7) advances to play either Chapman University or Wartburg College at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Trinity (35-8) faces an elimination game at 10 a.m. Saturday vs. either Wartburg or Chapman.

     "The situation will dictate what you are going to do from a team standpoint," said Whitewater coach John Vodenlich, whose team leads the nation in hitting at .368.

     "Sometimes you need to be able to bunt a little and run a little bit."

    Whitewater broke a 3-3 tie with two runs in the sixth, and the Warhawks scratched out one run before getting their lone extra-base hit of the game.

    Jeff Newcomer was hit with a pitch with one out and then stole second. Greg Harder then singled up the middle, and Newcomer was held at third base. A fielder's choice ground ball by Nicholas Teach scored Newcomer, and Ross Klawitter, who has as many home runs (14) as the entire Trinity team, followed with a triple off the right field wall to score Teach.

    Teach, batting in the ninth spot in the order, was 2-for-4 on the day with three runs batted in and two runs scored. His teammates in the bottom third of the order, Newcomer and Harder, both had a hit and sparked the Whitewater offense all day.

     "We're the skinny kids on the team, and we have to put a little extra effort into it," Teach said.

    The Warhawks added three runs in the eighth inning to put the game away. Teach started the rally when he was hit by a pitch. Klawitter singled through the right side, and Dan Gnatzig followed with another ground ball single to right field to score Teach. After a sacrifice fly scored Klawitter, Aaron Guilbault singled to center field to put the Warhawks up 8-3.

     "They smelled it there," Trinity coach Bill Decker said. "They got up 5-3 and tied to turn the knife a little bit and they did it."

    Whitewater got a solid performance from starting pitcher Kevin Tomasiewicz, who pitched eight innings but struggled a bit through the first five innings. He struck out seven and walked three while throwing 134 pitches.

     "He made some adjustments and kept getting better and better," Vodenlich said of Tomasiewicz.

     "I think it's a credit to him. There are not too many people who can bet not at their best and be that good."

    Whitewater got on the board in the second when Aaron Soto started a two-run rally with a two-out walk. Newcomer followed with a solid single to left, and Harder followed with another walk to load the bases. Teach then dumped a bloop single into right field to score Soto and Newcomer and give the Warhawks a 2-0 lead.

    Trinity tied the game at 2-2 with a pair of runs in the third inning. Billy Wise and Jeff Natale came up with back-to-back one-out singles before Aaron Goldstein struck out. Andrew Fries followed with a line drive single to left to score Wise, and Ben Silvanic then grounded a single to left top score Natale and tie the game.

    Whitewater jumped back ahead in the top of the fourth using some more fundamental baseball. Eddie Adamson led off the inning with a walk, and Soto followed with an infield single. Newcomer bunted the runners over, and Harder's ground out scored Adamson to put the Warhawks up 3-2.

    Trinity came back to tie the game at 3-3 in the fifth. Goldstein laced a ball into the gap in right-center field, and when the ball was bobbled by Soto, Goldstein raced all the way to third. Fries followed with a sacrifice fly to get the Bantams back to even.

    That was all Trinity, which missed several scoring chances in the second, third and seventh innings, would get.

     "When you have the opportunity to take advantage of those situations like we had today and you don't get it done, you're going to be on the losing end," Decker said.