The Wright State Raiders baseball team has had an unofficial mascot hanging out in their dugout, ever since the team’s bus hit and killed a deer on April 24.

The team had a meeting, and said that they needed something to rally themselves. The next day, their team bus inadvertently ran over the deer, and the players somehow then decided that the deer would be their rallying chip.

The luck hasn’t run out for Wright State either. In an elimination game in the NCAA Tournament, the Raiders knocked off Western Michigan 10-3, thanks to 15 hits in the Louisville Regional.

The win gave Wright State 45 wins on the season, which ties the school record set by the 1989 team. They will face the loser of the Louisville-Ohio State game that’s being played this afternoon on Sunday at noon ET. If they win that one, they will play the winner of the Louisville-Ohio State game Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.

As long as the wins keep coming, keep Gary the deer around. He seems to be working pretty well.

[SB Nation]

 

About Harry Lyles Jr.

Harry Lyles Jr. is an Atlanta-based writer, and a Georgia State University graduate.