TUESDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Kentucky 4, East Tennessee State 3
@Alabama A&M 4,
Morehead State 2
Illinois State 17-6,
@SIUE 3-5
@Southern Illinois 3,
Eastern Illinois 2
#3 Vanderbilt 8,
@Belmont 4
Saint Louis 11,
@Southeast Missouri 8
Jacksonville State 7, @Troy 3
@Evansville 5-6,
UT Martin 2-5
@Memphis 12,
Murray State 8
@#14 Tennessee 8,
Austin Peay 7 (12 innings)
EASTERN KENTUCKY 4, EAST TENNESSEE STATE 3
RICHMOND, Ky. - Behind a strong start from freshman right-hander Brian Mroz, Eastern Kentucky beat East Tennessee 4-3 on Tuesday at Turkey Hughes Field.
Mroz struck out six batters in six innings. He allowed one run on five hits and walked one in his first collegiate start.
The Colonels (8-12) trailed 1-0 going into the bottom of the fourth. However, Bryan Soloman and Luke Wurzelbacher changed that in a hurry with back-to-back one-out solo home runs to put the home squad in front 2-1. It was the second home run of the season for both players.
Eastern added two more in the sixth. Soloman drove in Sean Hagen with a double to left center. Ben Fisher’s single brought home Soloman later in the inning. Soloman finished 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs.
ETSU (8-11) drew within one in the top of the ninth on a two-run home run by Andrew Lasure, his first of the season.
Josh Jacques (1-3) suffered the loss after allowing four runs on six hits in five and one-third innings. Eastern’s Cody Creamer picked up his fourth save of the season despite allowing two runs on four hits in the ninth.
ALABAMA A&M 4, MOREHEAD STATE 2
NORMAL, Ala. - Four Alabama A&M pitchers combined to allow eight hits to the Morehead State baseball team Tuesday, and the Bulldogs defeated the Eagles 4-2 on their home field.
AAMU (8-14) scored once each in the second, fourth, fifth and seventh innings and surrendered just one extra-base hit. MSU (8-11) fell to 4-4 on the road.
Alabama A&M leadoff hitter Keyon Welch was 3-for-4, while rightfielder Andrew Utterback had a pair of hits, including a solo home run.
Starting pitcher Derrick Winter (1-2) struck out a pair of MSU batters in a six-inning win. Devin Smith tossed a scoreless ninth inning for his first save of the season.
MSU sophomore righty Blake Smith (1-1) surrendered seven hits in 4.1 innings and struck out three. Junior reliever Matt Ellenbest allowed just one run in 3.2 innings.
Junior rightfielder Brandon Rawe extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a sixth-inning RBI double. Junior leftfielder Nick Newell, junior first baseman Kane Sweeney and freshman centerfielder Ryan Kent recorded two hits apiece. Sweeney moved his hitting streak to seven games, while Kent upped his to five.
Sophomore designated hitter Alan Mocahbee tallied MSU's other RBI with a first-inning sacrifice fly.
ILLINOIS STATE 17-6, SIUE 3-5
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Illinois State swept a doubleheader Tuesday at Simmons Baseball Complex, scoring three times in the top of the seventh inning to come-from-behind for a 6-5 win in the nightcap. The Redbirds won the opener 17-3.
The Cougars dropped to 6-12, while Illinois State improved to 13-5.
The Cougars committed a combined nine errors accounting for five unearned runs over the two games.
The Cougars built a 5-0 lead in the game two against Illinois State starter Matt Lambert. SIUE scored a run in the first inning before adding four in the second inning. Jacob Stewart drove in a run in the inning with a double; Denton Reed added a two-run triple and Nick Lombardo drove in Reed with a sacrifice fly.
ISU relievers Will Headen, David Suarez and Jeremy Rhoades held the Cougar offense to just three hits over the final five innings.
The Cougars took a 5-3 lead into the seventh inning when the Redbirds scored three times against SIUE closer P.J. Schuster. Schuster fell to 1-1 with the defeat. He gave up three hits in the inning and two of the runs were unearned. He struck out two.
Sophomore lefthander Zach Malach made his first career start for the Cougars. He allowed two runs on four hits over 3 1/3 innings. He struck out one.
In game one, SIUE took a 3-0 into the third inning, before the Redbirds scored 17 unanswered runs on 19 hits against four Cougar pitchers. Freshman Mike Miller (0-1) suffered the loss in his first start. He gave up five runs, three earned, on six hits over 3 2/3 innings. He struck out six.
Alec Saikal was the only SIUE player with more than a single hit in the opener. He was 2 for 4. He was 2 for 2 in the second game with a walk and a run scored.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 3, EASTERN ILLINOIS 2
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Matt Jones hit a walk-off, two-out double down the left field line to give the Saluki baseball team a 3-2 victory over Eastern Illinois on Tuesday evening at Itchy Jones Stadium.
EIU drops to 4-16 on the year and SIU improves to 11-8 overall. The Panthers will now play seven straight home games after playing 20 consecutive games away from Coaches Stadium to start the year. EIU plays host to IPFW on March 21-23 with the series opener slated for 3 p.m. on Friday.
The Panthers took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning when Frankie Perrone crossed home plate on a wild pitch. SIU tied the game at one on a Cody Daily sacrifice fly to centerfield in the seventh inning.
Adam Casson hit a two-out, RBI single to right field in the top of the ninth to give the Panthers a 2-1 advantage.
SIU had 10 more hits (12-2) than EIU and left three more runners on base (10-7). The Salukis also had two more errors (3-1) than the Panthers.
Casson and Jason Scholl were the lone Panthers with a hit in the game. Daily led the Saluki offense as he went 3-for-3 at the plate with two RBI.
Troy Barton (0-1) took the loss for EIU, allowing three hits and two runs in the final 0.2 innings of play. Jake Haberer started the game for EIU and surrendered two hits in two scoreless innings.
Lee Weld (1-0) posted the win for SIU, retiring the lone batter he faced in the top of the ninth inning. Connor McFadden started for the Salukis and did not allow any hits in 4.2 innings of work. The Saluki pitching staff didn’t allow a hit through the game’s first 6.1 innings.
#3 VANDERBILT 8, BELMONT 4
NASHVILLE - The Bruins dropped their midweek contest with No.3 Vanderbilt, 8-4 Tuesday night at Rose Park.
Vanderbilt's Bryan Reynold's hit a solo homer in the top of the fourth to put the Commodores on the board, 1-0. The Bruins answered in the bottom half behind a triple from Greg Brody. A sacrifice fly from Matt Kinney allowed Brody to score and tie the game at 1-1.
Three costly Belmont errors allowed the Commodores to score three in the top of the fifth and take 4-1 lead. Behind a two-run home run, Vanderbilt added three more runs in the sixth. A double from pinch hitter Nolan Rogers added one more for the 'Dores in the seventh to take a 8-1 lead.
In the bottom of the eighth, Scott Moses came off the bench and hit a two-run home run, and cut Vanderbilt's lead, 8-3. The Bruins added one more in the bottom of the ninth behind an RBI single from Jamie Ritchie.
James Buckelew made his 45th career start and took sole possession of third place in program history. The senior left hander went six innings on the mound. He gave up eight hits, four earned runs and struck out six, with three strikeouts coming in the first inning.
SAINT LOUIS 11, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 8
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Saint Louis Billikens defeated the Southeast Missouri baseball team Tuesday evening, 11-8. The Redhawks saw their seven-game winning streak come to an end with the loss to Saint Louis (11-8). Southeast falls to 13-7 on the season.
The Redhawks got on the board first in the contest. With bases loaded for Clayton Evans, he drew a base on balls to put the Redhawks ahead. Derek Gibson also extended his hitting streak to 13 games and his on base streak to 16 to lead off the inning.
Andy Lennington extended the Redhawk lead to 3-0 in the third inning on a two-RBI single to score Gibson and Dalton Hewitt.
The Billikens tied the game the following inning on an RBI double, a sac fly, and an RBI single. Alex Siddle came in with two out in the inning to relieve starter Alex Winkelman.
Saint Louis put up a five-spot in the fifth inning to take a commanding lead on Southeast. The Billikens used two, two-RBI hits and a sacrifice fly to go up 8-3 in the fifth. On the sac fly, Southeast doubled up the runner on first to get out of the inning.
Just like that, Southeast was back in the game, down only a run, in the sixth inning. With bases loaded for Gibson, he flied out to right to score Jason Blum. With one swift swing of the bat, Matt Tellor drove a long ball over the left field wall to drive in three runs and make the score 8-7, Saint Louis.
Saint Louis used a Danny Murphy leadoff home run in the seventh to extend the lead to 9-7. The Billikens tacked on two more runs in the top of the ninth on a two-run home run to dead center field off the bat of Danny Brennan.
Going to the bottom of the ninth, down 11-7, Lennington led off the inning with a triple to right center then immediately scored when the shortstop threw the ball in to the Redhawks dugout. Southeast was unable to string any kind of rally together and fell 11-8 in the contest.
The Redhawks and Billikens each tallied 11 hits in the game. Lennington finished the game 3-for-5 with a run scored and two RBI. Hewitt and Gibson each went 2-for-4 with two runs each. For Saint Louis, Murphy was a perfect 3-for-3 with an RBI and four runs scored. Three other Billikens contributed two hits apiece.
Siddle (2-2) suffered the loss after giving up the go-ahead run. Siddle worked two-thirds of an inning, giving up three runs on two hits. Both squads used six pitchers in the midweek matchup. Nick Vichio (1-0) earned the win. Vichio went two complete scoreless innings, giving up only two hits.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 7, TROY 3
TROY, Ala. - Stephen Bartlett and Joe McGuire each had two hits to lead Jacksonville State to a 7-3 win over Troy in college baseball Tuesday evening.
Ryan Sebra (1-0) pitched 2 1/3 innings of hitless relief to earn his first win of the season for the Gamecocks. Jesse Nelson (1-1) gave up five runs after facing just seven batters in just 2/3 of an inning to suffer his first loss for the Trojans.
Jax State (12-8) jumped on the board early after scoring five runs in the first inning to chase Troy starter Nelson from the game after the Gamecocks loaded the bases and Jarrett Hood walked to score the first run of the game.
Josh Bobo followed with a single up the middle to score two runs, while Bartlett followed with a single to left field to score two more runs as the Gamecocks built a 5-0 lead.
Troy (10-9) scored a run in the bottom of the first on a RBI single by Trevin Hall, but the Gamecocks answered in the top of the second inning.
McGuire reached on a one-out triple down the left field line and came in to score on a Troy wild pitch as the Gamecocks built a 6-1 lead.
The Trojans scored two runs in the fourth inning after Hall and T.J. Binder each drove in a run to cut the lead to 6-3, but the Gamecocks tacked on an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning after Chase Silvani scored on Paschal Petrongolo's sacrifice fly for the final margin.
The Gamecocks were led by McGuire and Bartlett with two hits each, while Bobo and Bartlett added a pair of RBI, and McGuire scored two runs to lead the Gamecocks.
Jax State used seven pitchers in the game and limited Troy to just five hits as the Gamecocks finished with six strikeouts and allowed just one extra base hit.
EVANSVILLE 5-6, UT MARTIN 2-5
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team nearly salvaged a split in tonight’s doubleheader at Evansville but the Purple Aces rallied to post a 6-5 win in extra innings of Game 2 following a 5-2 win in Game 1.
The Skyhawk offense came late in Game 1 but was out in full force early in Game 2, as UT Martin jumped out to a 5-0 lead after two innings of play. The offensive outburst was thanks in large part to senior Zack Malone, who went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and four RBI’s in the nightcap alone. Taylor Douglas and Drew Erie each started both games of today’s doubleheader and each tallied three hits to lead the Skyhawks (2-17).
Starting pitcher Chris Ross (0-2) pitched well in Game 1, allowing just three earned runs over five innings but was hit with the loss. John Houston (1-1) was tagged with the loss in Game 2 after surrendering one run in 0.2 innings of work.
Stu Jones (three innings, one run allowed in Game 2), Carter Smith (two earned runs allowed in four innings while starting Game 2) and Jacob Gansert (two runs in one inning in Game 1) also saw time on the mound for the Skyhawks today in the pair of seven-inning games.
UT Martin continues Ohio Valley Conference play this weekend with a road matchup at Tennessee Tech on March 21-23.
The Skyhawk bats came alive in the final two innings but Evansville made a 5-0 lead stand up in Game 1.
The Purple Aces scored twice with two outs in the bottom of the first. Ross then pounded the strike zone, retiring eight batters in a row at one point before a one-out single in the fourth snapped the streak. Ross then escaped a potential jam by inducing a lineout double play on the very next pitch to keep the score at 2-0.
A pair of Evansville doubles gave the Purple Aces a 3-0 lead in the fifth but UT Martin got a run back in the top of the sixth. After Fletcher Johnson reached on a fielder’s choice, Erie singles to center and Douglas singled through the right side with two outs to plate Johnson and get the Skyhawks within a pair of runs.
However, the Purple Aces tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to go back ahead by a 5-1 margin. Nico Zych and Kenny King began the top of the seventh off with back-to-back singles and although Zych would later score, the Skyhawks could not provide another baserunner.
In game two UT Martin seemed destined to pick up the victory until Evansville snatched up the win by scoring six unanswered runs to close out the contest.
After scoring in the final two frames of Game 1, the Skyhawks scored in the first two innings in Game 2 to waste no time building an early advantage.
Erie singled to lead off the game and moved up to second base after a Chase Young sacrifice bunt. Taylor Cox then singled up the middle to plate Erie and give UT Martin a 1-0 lead. Three pitches later, Malone connected on a long homer out to left field – as his first career round-tripper provided the Skyhawks with a 3-0 lead.
Smith pitched around a leadoff single to post a zero on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first.
Mikey Nantze grinded out a single to leadoff the second and advanced to third two pitches later when Erie pulled a double down the left field line. A walk to Young then loaded the bases with no outs but Evansville recovered to get a forceout at home and a strikeout. With two away, it was Malone who once again emerged as the hero – as his single to left field scored Erie and Young and gave the Skyhawks a five-run lead.
Smith would once again work his way around harmless singles in the second and third innings before the Purple Aces took advantage of a pair of UT Martin miscues in the fourth and score four runs.
The Skyhawks had a pair of baserunners aboard with only one out in the fifth but couldn’t expand upon their lead. Jones entered the game before the fifth and dialed up a pair of strikeouts to keep UT Martin’s one-run lead intact.
UT Martin once again had a man in scoring position in the sixth but the score remained 5-4 until Evansville tied the game with a two-out double in the bottom half of the frame.
Neither side could score in the seventh so the game went into extra innings. Houston struck out two of the first three batters he faced but the Purple Aces would soon come away with the walkoff win with a single to center off the bat of leading hitter Kyle Pollock.
MEMPHIS 12, MURRAY STATE 8
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Murray State scored seven runs in the first three innings, but it was not enough as Memphis used a big fifth inning to hand the Breds a 12-8 defeat Tuesday evening at FedEx Park.
The Breds (9-9) got on the board in the first inning as Matt McGowan hit a towering solo shot to left field for his first career home run.
The Tigers (14-6) bounced right back in the home-half of the inning as a two-out throwing error put a runner on third with two outs. Tucker Tubbs followed with an RBI single through the right side, and Carter White golfed a ball in to right to score the second run.
MSU put together a big inning in the second as they pushed across four runs, three of which came with two outs. Luke Daugherty singled to start the inning and Clay Kelly walked. Clay Fuson drove in Daugherty from second with a single through the left side. Ty Stetson walked with two outs to load the bases for McGowan to come through again with a two-run single to left center. Anthony Bayus tacked on the fourth run with an RBI single up the middle.
The third inning saw another two-out rally for the Breds to push across two more runs. Daugherty started the frame with a walk and went to second on Dalton West’s single just inside the third-base bag. Clay Kelly moved both runners with a sacrifice bunt, and Taylor Mathews drove in both runners with a single into left center.
MEM pulled within one run in the fourth inning on a fielder’s choice to right field with the bases loaded and one out. White followed with a ball into the left-field corner that fell just inside the foul line for a two-run double.
The Tigers got the bats going in the fifth as two walks to start the inning sparked the rally. Ethan Gross doubled to left center to score the first run, and Jake Little capped the inning with a two-run home run to left field.
The Breds got a run in the eighth inning as Rick Linton delivered a pinch-hit triple to right field and scored on a Ty Stetson groundout to short.
Cody Maerz (1-3) took the loss after giving up five runs on two hits and three walks in two-thirds of an inning. Trevor Sutton (1-0) picked up the victory after tossing three shutout innings, allowing just no hits and striking out four.
McGowan led the offense by going 2-for-4 with a double and three RBIs. Mathews added a hit and two RBIs.
#14 TENNESSEE 8, AUSTIN PEAY 7 (12)
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University’s baseball team battled back from a pair of early deficits to force extra innings but could not topple No. 14 Tennessee, falling 8-7 in 12 innings, Tuesday night at Nelson Stadium.
Austin Peay (8-11) first rallied from a 5-0 deficit with a five-run fourth inning. First baseman Dre Gleason began the rally with an RBI double. Yet it was with two outs that the Govs did the bulk of the damage. Second baseman Kevin Corey had a RBI double, center fielder Casey Bredlau had a two-run single and right fielder Rolando Gautier tied the game with a RBI triple.
Tennessee (18-2) broke the tie in its half of the fourth as left fielder Christin Stewart hit a two-run home run to right field, giving the hosts a 7-5 lead.
Austin Peay’s bullpen settled in after giving up the lead, holding Tennessee scoreless for the next seven innings. The Govs escaped a bases-loaded jam in the sixth and left a runner stranded on third in the seventh.
Meanwhile, the Govs offense kept plugging away. Austin Peay saw the first two batters in the seventh reach base as third baseman Alex Robles singled and Gleason walked. A pair of wild pitches allowed Robles to score and trim the deficit to one run, 7-6. The Govs then saw Gleason cut down at home and could not restart the rally.
Austin Peay tied the game in the ninth after Gautier led off the frame with a walk. Shortstop Garrett Copeland moved the Gautier to second on a ground out and a Robles single put runners on the corner with one out. First baseman Dre Gleason rifled a single through the right side, allowing Gautier to score and tie the game. The Govs rally stalled as the next two batters struck out.
Neither team threatened in the 10th or 11th innings and the Govs were retired in order in the 12th. Tennessee opened its half of the 12th when third baseman Jordan Rodgers was hit by a pitch. The Volunteers then moved the runner with a sacrifice bunt before the Govs walked catcher Tyler Schultz. Shortstop Taylor Smart ended the game with a single through the left side and into the outfield, allowing Rodgers to score.
Reliever Jordan Harmon (0-1), the ninth of 10 Govs pitchers, suffered the loss after allowing one run to score in the 12th.
Tennessee reliever Josh Peterson (2-0) picked up the win with two scoreless innings to close the game.
Gleason led the Govs offense with a 2-for-5, two RBI outing. Corey finished 2-for-5 with a RBI and two doubles. Austin Peay’s seven runs tied for the most scored against Tennessee this season.
Price led Tennessee with a 3-for-5, two RBI outing.