WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Kentucky 7, @Miami (Ohio) 5 (14 innings)
@#12 Louisville 7,
Morehead State 3
Middle Tennessee 12,
@Austin Peay 7
@Jacksonville State 2, Troy 1 (10 innings)
@Bradley 5,
SIUE 1
EASTERN KENTUCKY 7, MIAMI (OHIO) 5 (14)
OXFORD, Ohio - It took 14 innings, but Eastern Kentucky escaped with a 7-5 victory at Miami (Ohio) on Wednesday.
Sean Hagen began the top of the 14th with a walk. He then stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error with one out in the inning. Kenny Hostrander broke the tie with a single through the right side to plate Hagen. A sacrifice fly by Doug Teegarden added an insurance run.
Teegarden finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored and three driven in.
The Colonels trailed 1-0 before putting up three in the fifth inning. Teegarden drove in a pair with a one-out single through the right side. Two batters later, Kyle Nowlin’s single through the left side scored Teegarden from second.
Miami tied it in the seventh. Gary Russo doubled in a run and John Crummy tied it with a two-out single down the left field line. Crummy went 3-for-6 on the night.
EKU went back on top in the eighth when Hagen reached on a fielder’s choice and Nowlin scored. However, the Redhawks answered in the bottom of the ninth. With one out, Max Andresen’s infield single scored Reed Schlesner from third to send the game into extra innings.
With one out in the top of the 13th inning, Teegarden reached on a bunt single. After a fly out, Nowlin kept the inning alive with a two-out walk to get runners at first and second. Shea Sullivan followed with a single down the right field line that scored Teegarden. Miami came right back in the bottom of the inning. Ryan Elble led off with a double down the right field line and then scored on Ryan Miller’s two-out single to right center.
Sophomore Chris Cervantes turned in his best performance of the season in his second start. He allowed just one unearned run on seven hits in five and two-thirds innings. He walked one and struck out two. Cody Creamer (1-1) picked up the win after allowing one run on three hits in two innings of relief work. Ben Gullo came on and pitched the final inning for the save. He did not allow a hit, walked one and struck out one.
#12 LOUISVILLE 7, MOREHEAD STATE 3
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The No. 12 Louisville baseball team plated seven unanswered runs over its last four at-bats to post a 7-3 victory over Morehead State before a crowd of 1,007 on Wednesday night at Patterson Stadium.
The Cardinals, who have played in six of the past seven NCAA Tournaments and advanced to the 2013 College World Series, improve to 30-11 overall and 22-6 at home. U of L is playing its only season in the American Athletic Conference before moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Ohio Valley Conference Eagles, who see their longest winning streak since 2005 end at six games, drop to 22-19 overall and 13-10 on the road. MSU, which knocked off No. 12 Kentucky and No. 23 Indiana earlier this season, also moves to 2-3 against nationally-ranked opponents.
Morehead State opened up a 3-0 lead when seven men came to the plate in the second inning, but Louisville responded with four runs in the fifth, one in the seventh and two more in the eighth. The Cardinals recorded 13 hits in the contest and six of their seven runs crossed the dish with two outs.
Sophomore designated hitter Danny Rosenbaum put U of L on the board with a two-run single in the fifth. Senior third baseman Alex Chittenden followed with a two-run double to give the Cardinals a lead they never relinquished. Freshman pinch hitter Corey Ray added a two-run homer in the eighth.
Freshman right-hander Ryan Lauria, the third of eight Louisville pitchers, was credited with the win. Junior left-hander Luke Schneider, the first of five Morehead State hurlers, suffered the loss. Right-hander Matt Ellenbest, who worked a scoreless inning, was the most effective reliever for MSU.
The Eagles finished with seventh hits and no errors. The Cardinals recorded 13 base knocks and one miscue. The teams combined to strand 17 runners.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 12, AUSTIN PEAY 7
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - One big inning doomed Austin Peay State University’s baseball team in a 12-7 loss to Middle Tennessee, Wednesday night, at Raymond C. Hand Park.
Austin Peay (16-25) led 4-2 after three innings, but was fortunate to hold that advantage as several miscues could have resulted in a much different score. The Govs committed two infield errors in the second inning, but were able to hold the Blue Raiders to two runs. On the other hand, the Govs saw a base runner cut down for the third out and had to settle for two runs in both the first and second innings.
Middle Tennessee (20-21) did not falter when the Govs offered another golden scoring opportunity in the fourth. The Blue Raiders sent 10 men to the plate – six of those reaching with two outs – in a seven-run fourth inning. Austin Peay used three pitchers in the frame and surrendered four hits, two walks and hit a batter. Catcher Michael Adkins delivered the decisive blow with his season’s first home run – a three-run blast that put Middle Tennessee ahead for good, 9-4.
Austin Peay would score two runs in the sixth, closing to within 9-6, but Middle Tennessee responded with runs in each of the final three innings to secure the win.
Govs reliever Jake Corum (1-1) suffered the loss after allowing three of the four batters he faced to reach base safely and all three would ultimately score. Starter Caleb Powell allowed four runs on five hits in 3.1 innings but did not factor into the decision.
Middle Tennessee reliever Cody Tollison picked up the win after tossing 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing two hits to the seven batters he faced.
Center fielder Ryan Stephens was 3-for-5 with two RBI and second baseman Austin Bryant was 3-for-3 with three RBI to pace the Blue Raiders 13-hit attack.
Catcher Ridge Smith led Austin Peay’s 13-hit night with a 4-for-5, one RBI outing.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 2, TROY 1 (10)
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Joe McGuire's second RBI single of the night scored Griff Gordon in the bottom of the 10th inning and gave the Jacksonville State baseball team a 2-1 walkoff win and the season sweep of Troy on Wednesday night at Rudy Abbott Field.
The freshman from Oxford drove in the Gamecocks (22-17) first run in the sixth inning and then came through with the dramatic game winner four innings later to cap a 3-for-5 night against the in-state rival Trojans (20-22). After Troy reliever Jeremy McGowan walked Stephen Bartlett to bring up the Oxford, Ala., native with two outs and runners at the corners, McGuire lined his 1-2 fastball into left field to score Gordon and force his teammates to chase him down for a celebration on the basepaths.
Gordon set the game winner up with his leadoff single in the first extra frame of the night, the first time JSU had the leadoff man on in the game. On the other side of the scorecard, Troy had the leadoff man on base seven times and in each of the last six innings. The eight JSU pitchers that saw action in the game stranded 10 Trojans runners, including six in scoring position. The win gives JSU its first season sweep of Troy since 1993.
Troy used a little small ball to break a scoreless tie in the third, when a Clay Holcomb leadoff grounder up the middle gave Troy its first hit of the game. Adam Tewksbury bunted him to second. Holcomb then stole third and scored on a Peyton Fuller groundout to second to give Troy a 1-0 lead.
The Gamecocks had a few opportunities but couldn't get a run across until the sixth, when a one-out Sebra double missed getting over the left field wall by about two feet. The two-bagger gave JSU its first baserunner with less than two outs in the game.
It paid off for the Gamecocks, when Joe McGuire's two-out grounder found the hole up the middle and scored Sebra from second to tie the game at 1-1.
Troy continued to get the leadoff man on, including three leadoff walks from JSU pitchers in the final four innings, but the Trojans couldn't get one across. Two walks led off the Trojan seventh, but Jo-El Bennett was picked off at first by Ryan Sebra and then Holcomb was hit by a two-out grounder to end that Trojan threat.
The ninth saw Gamecock closer Travis Stout walk Nick Masonia and then throw it down the right field line trying to retire Bennett after his sac bunt attempt, but Gordon got to the ball in foul territory and threw out Masonia at the plate to get the first out and preserve the tie. Stout then struck out Holcomb and forced Tyler Vaughn to ground out to end the inning.
The Trojans used another leadoff walk and their fifth sac bunt of the night to put leadoff batter Peyton Fuller on second with one out, but Tony Urban struck out Trevin Hall and got Matthew Howard to fly out to center to keep it tied headed to the bottom of the 10th.
Gordon got the game winning rally going with his leadoff single on McGowan's 2-2 pitch and then moved to second on a sac bunt from Tyler Gamble, JSU's first of the night. McGowan intentionally walked Bartlett with two outs but let his first pitch sail on catcher Austin Sullivan for a wild pitch that allowed Gordon to move to third to set up McGuire's winner.
Urban (1-2) grabbed the win in one scoreless inning of relief that saw him walk one and strike out one, while McGowan (3-5) took the loss after giving up a run on three hits and a walk in 1.2 innings on the mound.
Casey Antley started the game for JSU and held Troy to a run on two hits, while striking out five in four innings of work. Trojan starter Levi Tate tossed six innings and allowed a run on seven hits, also striking out five.
BRADLEY 5, SIUE 1
PEORIA, Ill. - Bradley scored four times in the sixth inning Wednesday night and went on to a 5-1 win over SIUE in nonconference baseball at a cold and windy Dozer Park.
SIUE fell to 13-25 with the loss. Bradley improved to 21-10. The two teams split the season series. SIUE defeated Bradley in an earlier game in Edwardsville.
Miller tossed a career-high 5 1/3 innings. He was charged with three runs on four hits. He struck out two.
Skyler Geissinger, making his first-ever appearance on the mound for SIUE, gave up two runs on a hit and two walks in 2/3 of an inning. The Braves used three hits and the two walks to score four times in the inning.
Jacob Stewart, making his first pitching appearance this season, pitched a perfect seventh inning striking out one.
Stoecklin said having infielders-turned pitchers Geissinger and Stewart available will be helpful to the Cougars.
The Cougars scored their only run of the game in the eighth inning. Austin Verschoore pinch hit and walked with two outs. Alec Saikal followed with a single to center. Devin Caldwell walked to load the bases. Geissinger was then hit by a pitch, forcing home Verschoore to make it 5-1. The Cougars did not score again and left the bases loaded in the eighth, nine men over the last four innings, and 10 for the game.
The Cougars finished with just six hits. No SIUE player had more than one hit.