There aren’t many better ways to start a collegiate baseball career than hitting a walk-off base hit.

After the Bears tied the score at 4 in the top of the final inning, sophomore Dallas Burke, who went 3-for-5, started the bottom of the frame with a base hit to left field. A walk by sophomore Sean Flanagan brought Corbeil to the plate with one out.

The Chesterfield, Mo., native locked in on a fastball from freshman Drew Freie and cranked a long line drive just inside the left field foul line, allowing Burke to score easily from second for the game-winning run.

“The plan was to get [Corbeil] a few at-bats,” head coach Jack Dahm said. “Thank goodness he came up in that situation.”

The Des Moines school climbed to a 3-0 advantage in the fifth inning after a well-executed hit-and-run, followed by a throwing error from Iowa junior third baseman Chett Zeise.

Despite minor success at the plate to start the game — junior Kurtis Muller, sophomore Mike McQuillan, and senior Ryan Durant began the first inning with three-consecutive hits before being held to no runs — the Hawkeyes couldn’t get clutch hits with runners in scoring position.

Iowa had its best scoring opportunity since the first inning when the Hawkeyes loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh.

Zeise worked a full count from freshman pitcher Ryan Torgerson before swinging at strike three.

Flanagan drew a two-out walk to bring in the team’s first run of the game before Corbeil made his Hawkeye début.

Dahm chose to bring in Corbeil in place of starting senior catcher Tyson Blaser, who had previously struck out three times.

His decision worked — the freshman ripped a single into right field, scoring two runs and tying the game.

“[Corbeil] has a toughness about him that we like,” Dahm said.

Corbeil said coming off the bench and being placed in that scenario for his first collegiate at-bat was nerve-racking, but he did his best to stay calm.

“When Coach told me I was going to bat, I just walked into the clubhouse and took some swings,” Corbeil said.

The freshman finished the game 2-for-2 with three RBIs.

The Hawkeyes took the lead in the eighth inning after a double from Muller, who stole third during the ensuing at-bat and scored on a throwing error during the attempt.

Iowa featured six pitchers in the nine-inning contest including freshman Matt Dermody, who was the first pitcher in Iowa high-school history to strike out all 18 batters faced in a six-inning perfect game last year as a senior at Norwalk High School.

Dermody faced three batters, hitting one, but forcing a double-play to end the top of the fifth.

Dahm said he was happy with the team’s overall performance, but Iowa needs to work on its defense after committing three errors. Defense was a major disappointment for the team last season, he said.

“It was good to get these guys a feel of playing against another team,” he said. “We had some defensive breakdowns that cost us a bit, so we need to clean that up, but I’m glad we found a way to win.”