GRAND CHUTE, WIS. - Adam Dominick pitched a complete-game seven-hitter and allowed just two unearned runs as Wisconsin-Whitewater defeated SUNY Cortland, 10-2, in an elimination game at the NCAA Division III Baseball World Series. Cortland finished tied for seventh nationally with an 0-2 record at the Series, and its final record of 42-5 matches the second-highest win total in school history.

Whitewater (40-9) will face the loser of Saturday's Chapman-Johns Hopkins game in another elimination game Sunday at noon.

Freshman Travis Ratliff (Levittown/Division Avenue) suffered his first loss in seven decisions for Cortland despite allowing only four hits and three walks and striking out a career-high nine batters in five and two-third innings.

"Travis gave us a good start," said Cortland head coach Joe Brown. "We just didn't capitalize on our opportunities to score runs." Cortland left at least one runner on base in each of the last eight innings and nine for the game.

Junior Adam Dimino (Lima/Honeoye Falls-Lima) finished 2-for-4 with an RBI for the Red Dragons, who lost consecutive games for the first time since March 31, 2007. Senior Joey Russo (Inwood/Lawrence) singled in the ninth inning to finish his collegiate career on a 14-game hitting streak.

Kevin Zalnis went 2-for-4 with a homer, double and two RBI and Ben Prather was 3-for-5 with a double an an RBI for Whitewater. Joe Munn finished 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI, while Dominick improved to 11-2 with the victory.

Cortland took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second. Senior Matt Vitalone (Rome/Rome Free Academy) led off with a single and, with one out, senior John Giametta Jr. (Marlboro) hit a grounder to short. The throw from the shortstop to second sailed into right field, allowing Vitalone to go to third and Giametta to second. Junior John Zilnicki (Riverhead) grounded out to second to drive in the run.

Ratliff retired the first six batters, four by strikeout, before allowing a Munn double off the fence in center to lead off the top of the third. Munn went to third on a one-out infield single by Greg Harder and scored on a Ben Kuhlmann fielder's choice. In the fourth, Jeff Donovan drew a leadoff walk and scored on Zalnis' two-run homer down the left field line two batters later.

Whitewater added a run in the sixth on a Prather RBI double and two in the seventh on a throwing error and a Donovan RBI double to take a 6-1 lead. Russo reached on an error with one out in the bottom of the seventh and junior Khyle Dimino (Lima/Brighton) walked. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third and Adam Dimino drove in a run with a groundout to short.

Despite the losses at the Series, the Red Dragons still enjoyed one of the best campaigns in school history.

"This was the best season I've been a part of," said Giametta, a four-year letterwinner who was on Red Dragon teams that posted a combined 166-30-1 record and advanced to three World Series. "This was the most fun that I've ever had, playing with the greatest people that you'll ever be with."

(Courtesy: Cortland Athletics)