THURSDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Illinois 7, @Western Illinois 1
@Southern Indiana 8, Lindenwood 4
Southeast Missouri 4, @Little Rock 2
Morehead State 7, @Tennessee Tech 4
@SIUE 8, UT Martin 2
EASTERN ILLINOIS 7, WESTERN ILLINOIS 1
MACOMB, Ill. - Eastern Illinois earned a bounce-back win over Western Illinois, 7-1, ending a four-game losing skid. With the win, EIU improves to 29-19 (16-9 OVC), while the Leathernecks fall to 17-34 (8-17 OVC).
The Panthers found their rhythm both offensively and on the mound, led by Tyler Conklin. After a rough outing against SIUE, Conklin threw 97 pitches in 7.0 innings of work. Conklin struck out six Leathernecks while allowing one run on six hits.
Offensively, the Panthers scored seven runs on 13 hits. Quade Peters led the way with three hits, including a double and an RBI. Brett Stanley followed with two hits and a walk. Five Panthers recorded multiple hits, with Zak Goodwin, Ethan Rossi, and Tyler Castro joining Stanley and Peters with two hits.
After surrendering a first-inning run, the Panthers matched the score in the third inning. Peters and Rossi smashed back-to-back doubles to open the scoring for the Panthers.
With the game tied 1-1, EIU took control and sped away to open the weekend contest. The Panthers scored three go-ahead runs in the fifth en route to a 7-1 victory. Peters reached the base path once again with a single to left field. Castro, who went 2-4 on the day, crushed a double to left field, scoring Peters.
Stanley laid down a perfect bunt, causing chaos for WIU. Castro found home plate on a throwing error by Max Trripure on the mound.
Coming off a grand slam at ISU, Mike O'Conor continued his momentum with an RBI double to center field, scoring Stanley.
Eastern Illinois was not done scoring, putting away any potential rally with three more insurance runs in the eighth inning.
Goodwin and Rossi opened the frame with base hits, placing runners at the corners. The player of the game, Peters, found himself in the action once again, singling to right field and scored Goodwin.
Castro loaded the bases on an infield single, threatening the run-rule victory. Stanley and James Love earned back-to-back walks to score Rossi and Peters. However, the 7-1 final score stayed put as Karsten Stotlar weaved his way out of the jam. O'Conor popped up to first base, stranding the bases-loaded opportunity.
A.J. Hiestand faced no trouble, closing the game in 2.0 innings of relief. Throwing 20 pitches, Hiestand allowed zero runs on zero hits.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 8, LINDENWOOD 4
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Baseball opened its regular-season finale series against Lindenwood University with an 8-4 win on Thursday night at USI Baseball Field. USI moved to 26-26 overall and 9-16 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
The Lions opened the scoring quickly, going up 2-0 after the first inning. However, the Screaming Eagles managed to answer right away with a two-run second inning after junior infielder Zion Stephens put the ball in play and reached on a fielder's choice to drive in junior Drue Saenz, and then senior infielder Clayton Slack came around to score on a throwing error on the play to tie it up.
Lindenwood took a one-run advantage in the third frame, 3-2, which held until the bottom of the fifth inning when senior catcher Micajah Wall scored senior first baseman Patrick McLellan to knot the game up at three.
After the Screaming Eagles' bullpen stranded five Lindenwood runners on base between the fourth and sixth innings, junior Collin Senior pinch hit in the bottom of the sixth and drove in the go-ahead run to give USI a 4-3 lead on an RBI single.
USI broke the lead open with a four-run seventh inning, which was highlighted by a bases-clearing double by junior infielder Parker Martin. Senior and the Eagles tacked on one more run to take an 8-3 advantage into the final frames.
Lindenwood got one run back in the top of the ninth before the Screaming Eagles closed out the ballgame.
USI scored its eight runs off 11 hits, while Lindenwood tallied its four runs off 10 hits.
Martin led the USI offense, going 2-3 with three RBIs and three runs. Stephens and Senior each collected a pair of RBIs. Wall went 2-4 with an RBI.
On the mound, junior hurler Ryan Weller got the start for the Eagles, pitching three innings allowing three runs but only two were earned. The bullpen settled the game down for USI, as senior pitcher Andres Gonzales was the first on in relief and threw 2.2 scoreless innings with three strikeouts.. Getting the win was sophomore Caydon Laird (2-1), throwing a third of an inning. Freshman pitcher Levin East finished out the game for the Eagles, tossing the final three innings for his first save.
Lindenwood starting pitcher Josh Newell took a no-decision, going five innings with three runs - one earned - allowed. Aaron Jungers (6-1) suffered the loss in middle relief, surrendering five runs in 1.1 innings.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 4, LITTLE ROCK 2
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Southeast Missouri Baseball (36-16, 16-9 OVC) secured a 4–2 victory over Little Rock (30-23, 16-9 OVC) on Thursday night at Gary Hogan Field. The visitors hit two home runs as part of their eight-hit performance to claim the series opener.
In the second inning, Demitri Shakotko put the Redhawks on the board with a solo home run to deep center field, his third of the season, providing an early 1–0 lead. The score remained SEMO 1, Little Rock 0 through two innings.
Caleb Klein doubled in the third inning and was brought home by Cal Sullivan's RBI single, extending the lead. Southeast Missouri State led 2–0 through three innings.
The fourth inning saw Carson Schrack scoring on a fielder's choice by Brooks Kettering, increasing the advantage. Southeast Missouri State led 3–0 after four innings.
Kettering added a crucial insurance run in the ninth inning with a solo home run to deep right field, his third of the season. This gave Southeast Missouri State a 4–0 lead.
Little Rock responded in the bottom of the ninth with a two-run home run by Angel Cano, but it was not enough to overcome the deficit.
MOREHEAD STATE 7, TENNESSEE TECH 4
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Designated hitter Aubrey Kearns got the Morehead State baseball team on the board early with a home run, right fielder Ian McCubbin cleared the bases later with a three-run double, while starter Callum McGill pitched three shutout innings and Cole Wells came on for his first career save as the Eagles earned a series-opening win at Tennessee Tech's Averitt Express Baseball Complex Thursday night, 7-4.
Morehead State (29-23/13-12 OVC) has won 11 of its last 13 games, while the Eagle triumph eliminated the Golden Eagles (18-35/6-19 OVC) from any hope of making the conference tournament.
The Eagles wasted little time in taking a lead as Kearns connected on his 12th long ball of the year off Tech starter Carter Casabella in the first inning. He sent a pitch over the wall in right field.
MSU blew the game open with five runs in the third frame. Second baseman drew a walk to lead off. Left fielder JJ Dutton singled to put two runners on. After center-fielder Davis Germann moved the runners over on a ground out, third baseman Griffin Olson plated Griffith on a single to the pitcher. Kearns coaxed a walk before McCubbin clobbered a Casabella (2-6) offering off the wall in deep center to cleat the bases for a 5-0 lead on a double. First baseman Alex Kean pushed the advantage to 6-0 later on a run-scoring single to plate McCubbin.
The visitors made it 7-0 in the sixth stanza when McCubbin walked and later scored on shortstop Jaden Correa's single into shallow right field.
Tech made the ending interesting though, as the home team was able to muster a run in the seventh and three in the eighth off Eagle reliever Devin Costa. Wells came out for the ninth and appeared to coax a ground ball to third for the first out, but the throw was dropped for an error. After two more outs, Tech loaded the bases before Wells sealed the win on a fly out to left field.
Kean led the Eagles at the plate, going 3-for-4, while six additional batters garnered a hit a apiece.
McGill, on a pitch count to get ready for the upcoming OVC Tournament starting next Tuesday, tossed the first three innings and didn't allow a run on just three hits to improve to 3-0. Ethan Davis chewed up the middle 3.2 frames with a solid effort. He only gave up two hits and one run. Costa pitched 1.1 frames to give way to Wells.
Jackson Rooker and Tyler Bennett each rapped two hits apiece for the Golden Eagles.
SIUE 8, UT MARTIN 2
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - With an 8-2 win over UT Martin Thursday at Roy E. Lee Field, SIUE baseball captured the program's first-ever Ohio Valley Conference Regular Season Championship.
SIUE won its 10th consecutive game to improve to 32-21 overall and 19-6 in the OVC matching the program record for OVC wins, set in 2015.
The Conference title is the first for SIUE baseball since winning the 2007 Great Lakes Valley Conference regular season.
UT Martin (25-28, 10-15 OVC) took an early lead when Skyhawks' leadoff hitter TJ Grines sent the second pitch of the game over the left field fence for a 1-0 lead in the first inning.
After Cooper Eggert scored on an error to tie the score in the third, Ryan Niedzwiedz drilled a two-out two-run double to left to put the Cougars on top. Joshua Heyder followed with a two-run home run to give SIUE a 5-1 lead.
The Skyhawks cut the lead back to 5-2 with a run in the fifth and then threatened again in the seventh.
SIUE starter Spencer Stearns worked into the seventh inning, departing with two runners on an nobody out. Joseph Martin walked the first hitter he faced then struck out Colten Payton before getting TJ Dunsford to ground into a double play.
Stearns (7-3) allowed just the two runs over six innings while striking out a season-high seven hitters. Martin didn't allow a hit in two full innings of work. He fanned two.
Heyder jump-started a three-run Cougars eighth inning with his second blast of the night to leadoff the inning. Sean Kang added an RBI single and Gage Franck brought home another run with a perfectly executed sacrifice squeeze bunt.
Easton Harris closed out the game with a scoreless ninth inning, getting Andrew Lawrence to wave at strike three to end the game.
UT Martin outhit SIUE in the game 11-10. Gierer, Heyder, Kang and Ethan Willoughby all finished with two hits.a