SUNDAY'S SCORES
@Morehead State 20, Eastern Kentucky 6
@Austin Peay 12, Tennessee Tech 10
Belmont 34, @UT Martin 10
Southeast Missouri 22, @SIUE 8
Murray State 8-8, @Eastern Illinois 4-2
Air Force 7,
@Jacksonville State 4
MOREHEAD STATE 20, EASTERN KENTUCKY 6
MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Morehead State baseball team erupted for season highs in runs and hits en route to a 20-6 victory over Eastern Kentucky in the finale of an Ohio Valley Conference series Sunday at Allen Field.
Morehead State (13-13, 5-7 OVC) pounded out 23 hits, including eight of the nine batters in the lineup registering multi-hit days. It was the highest run total since notching 22 in the season finale at Jacksonville State in 2013.
The Eagles also won the series over EKU (7-16, 2-5) for the second consecutive season. MSU totaled 58 hits, including 20 extra-base knocks, scored 41 times and batted .457 in the three-game series.
Freshman starter David Calderon allowed four runs and seven hits in five innings to move to 1-1. Junior righty Tyler Keele struck out six and collected a three-inning save, his first of the year.
Morehead State's top four players in the lineup, sophomore centerfielder Ryan Kent, senior first baseman Kane Sweeney, senior right fielder Brandon Rawe and senior utility player Chris Robinson, combined to hit 34-of-66 (.515) in the series and all four registered multi-hit efforts all three days.
Sweeney was 3-of-5 today with a team-high six RBI, including a three-run homer during a four-run fourth frame. Robinson and Rawe added three RBI apiece, and Robinson clubbed his third homer of the year in the midst of an eight-run eighth inning. Rawe crushed two doubles and now leads the Eagles with a .396 batting average in the 12 league games.
Senior designated hitter Nick Newell, sophomore third baseman Alex Stephens and freshman second baseman Braxton also collected three hits. Freshman catcher Tyler Niemann, who entered the day with only one career hit, launched his first career home run to drive in three in the eighth. The Eagles also pushed across five runs in the fifth.
EKU third baseman Mandy Alvarez smacked a pair of home runs and finished 3-for-5 with four RBI. He hit five home runs in the series. Rightfielder TJ Alas also went 3-for-5.
Colonel starter Chris Cervantes (0-1) was tagged with the loss after surrendering 11 earned runs in 4.1 innings.
AUSTIN PEAY 12, TENNESSEE TECH 10
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - A five home run barrage lifted Austin Peay State University’s baseball team to a 12-10 Ohio Valley Conference victory against Tennessee Tech, Sunday, at Raymond C. Hand Park.
Austin Peay (14-10, 8-4 OVC) completed a three-game sweep of their rival for the first time since 2011. It is the Govs second OVC series sweep this season and helps keep them in fourth place after four weeks of conference play.
Catcher Ridge Smith had two home runs in the game and his leadoff shot in the fifth inning broke a 5-5 tie and put the Govs ahead for good. Center fielder Chase Hamilton added a three-run home run later in the inning to put the Govs ahead 10-5. Designated hitter Patrick Massoni would add a two-run home run in the seventh for a 12-7 lead that would stand.
The outburst was enough for starting pitcher Caleb Powell (4-0) to keep his record unblemished. He had to overcome a five-run third inning that was extended by both a Govs error and a hotly debated call at first base that resulted in a single. After that play, Powell would surrender a three-run home run as Tennessee Tech took a 5-2 lead.
Austin Peay responded immediately with a three-run third inning to tie the game. Second baseman Garrett Copeland hit a two-out, two-run double to start the scoring. Three batters later first baseman Dre Gleason was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to level the game, 5-5.
Powell held the Golden Eagles scoreless in the fourth and fifth innings to give the Govs offense time to mount its rally. Powell ultimately went 5.2 innings, allowing five runs (one earned) on 10 hits while striking out six batters.
Tennessee Tech (10-16, 4-8 OVC) would rally for two runs in the sixth and three runs in the ninth to keep Austin Peay close. First baseman Chase Chambers’ two-run double in the sixth trimmed the deficit to 10-7. In the ninth, designated hitter Ryan Flick hit a solo home run, second baseman Trevor Putzig had a RBI double and center fielder David Allen added a RBI single to set the final score.
Austin Peay reliever A.J. Gaura, who entered with the tying run at first base in the ninth inning, recorded the game’s final out for his season’s fourth save.
Massoni, Smith and Copeland each had two hits and two RBI to lead the Govs 12-hit offensive attack. Hamilton went 1-for-2 with three RBI. Left fielder Cayce Bredlau also had a home run as part of his 2-for-5 outing.
Tennessee Tech reliever Trevor Malone (2-1) was tagged for the loss after allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits in 2.1 innings. He came on in relief of starter Travis Moths who allowed five runs on five hits in 2.2 innings.
Flick paced the Golden Eagles with a 3-for-5, two RBI outing at the plate. Catcher Jordan Hopkins went 2-for-5 with three RBI.
BELMONT 34, UT MARTIN 10
MARTIN, Tenn. - The Bruins hit an OVC record of 12 home runs against the UT Martin Skyhawks on Sunday winning 34-10 in game three of the weekend series at Skyhawk Field.
After dropping games one and two to UT Martin, the Bruins returned to Skyhawk Field eager for a win. With the wind blowing out, the Bruins attacked at the plate early and often with record-setting success.
Drew Ferguson, Joe Stovall, Nick Egli, and Tyler Fullerton each recorded two home runs for the Bruins. Ferguson went five for eight at the plate with three singles and two home runs; he recorded 6 RBIs.
After being stifled at the plate for most of the weekend to the tune of 14 scoreless innings through the first two games of the series, the Bruins batted through the lineup in the top of the first inning on Sunday. The explosive first inning resulted in a quick, five run lead via four home runs by Ferguson, Fullerton, Egli, and Stovall.
Almost batting through the lineup again in the second, the Bruins tacked on another two runs with a single from Tyler Walsh (Evansville, Ind.). Two more runs were plated in the top of the third. The leadoff hitter reached on a walk; he advanced on a double by Diamond and scored on a single by Ferguson. With Diamond on third, a ground out to short allowed him to score, too.
Freshman right-hander Tyler Vaughn held the Skyhawks scoreless until the bottom of the fourth when they scored via an error.
The Bruins had a record setting sixth inning against UT Martin, plating 20 runs on 18 hits while retiring three Skyhawk pitchers. Drew Ferguson, Matt Beaty, Tyler Walsh, Nick Egli, Joe Stovall, Tyler Fullerton, and Zach Lannan all had home runs in the sixth. In addition to hitting seven home runs, the Bruins managed seven singles, four doubles, and three walks in this incredible 18-hit inning.
The Bruins toppled multiple NCAA records in the sixth inning. Belmont sent 26 Bruins to the plate passing the Delaware State vs. New Mexico game from 1993.
The Bruins flew past the NCAA record of 14 hits in an inning as they posted 18 hits, and they broke the record of 43 total bases in an inning which was set by Delaware back in 1993.
With seven home runs, the Bruins tied the record Southern Utah set in 2003. The Bruins' 20 runs scored was just one run shy of tying the record for most runs scored in an inning.
The Bruins recorded a total of 31 hits to UT Martin's 11 hits. Of the 42 total hits in the game, 15 were home runs. Starting pitcher Tyler Vaughn received the win on the mound and improved his record to 3-1 on the season.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 22, SIUE 8
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Southeast Missouri offense exploded for 22 runs in Sunday's win over the SIUE Cougars, 22-8. It is a new season-high in runs for the Redhawks.
With the win, Southeast Missouri and SIUE are now tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference at 9-3. Southeast is 18-10 overall and SIUE is 9-13. With a win for Belmont Sunday, all three teams will be tied for first place with a .750 winning percentage.
The day was highlighted by freshman Peter Williams recording his first two career hits, both home runs, in his first career start. He had five RBI on the day. Other offensive highlights included Dalton Hewitt recording a career-high six RBI and getting on base six times in the game after going 3-for-3 with three walks. Nolan Fisher also had a pinch hit grand slam late in the game.
After Alex Winkelman issued a pair of one-out walks, Parker Guinn launched a home run to left center to put the Cougars on the board, 3-0 in the first. Hewitt narrowed the SIUE lead to 3-1 with a home run of his own in the top of the second inning.
Denton Reed advanced from first to third on a throwing error by Winkelman on a failed pickoff attempt. He scored on a ground out by Nick Lombardo and extended the lead to 4-1. SIUE went on to load the bases but Southeast got out of the inning without any further damage. After reaching on a fielder's choice, Trevor Ezell scored from first on a double that split the left-center gap by Jason Blum to narrow the SIUE lead to 4-2 in the third inning.
Winkelman fanned two batters to start the third inning but a two-out home run by Mario Tursi extended the lead to 5-2. An RBI double by Lombardo plated another to make it 6-2 in the third. Winkelman's day was done after the RBI double.
The tides quickly turned in Southeast Missouri's favor in the fourth inning. After a walk and a hit, Branden Boggetto drove in Hewitt to narrow the lead to 6-3. In his third career at bat, Williams launched a three-run home run to left for his first collegiate hit, tying the game at six runs apiece. Clayton Evans singled to right for the fourth-consecutive hit in the inning. A one-out error by the third baseman allowed Blum to reach. Garrett Gandolfo singled to right to drive in Evans and give Southeast a 7-6 lead. Hewitt drove in two more followed by an RBI single by Scott Mitchell to extend the lead to 10-6. Southeast scored eight runs on seven hits with one SIUE error and sent 13 men to the plate in the inning.
Ryan Rippee added two more runs to the tally in the fifth inning with a two-run triple to centerfield, making it 12-6. SIUE plated a run in the fifth inning on an RBI fielder's choice, narrowing the Redhawk lead to 12-7.
With Boggetto on base, Williams launched his second home run of the day, his second career hit, to left to extend the lead to 14-7. Two more runs scored on a single to right by Hewitt, opening a 16-7 lead for Southeast in the sixth inning. Skyler Geissinger drove in a run for the Cougars in the bottom of the sixth to make it 16-8.
After three-straight, two-out walks loaded the bases in the top of the eighth inning, pinch hitter Fisher stepped in and drove a grand slam to dead center field, to bring the run tally to 20-8. Two more Redhawk runs touched home in the top of the ninth inning with a sac fly by Hewitt and an RBI hit by Alex Burridge to bring the final tally to 22-8.
The Redhawks finished with 18 hits in the contest. Boggetto and Evans each had three hits and three runs while Mitchell went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI. The bottom of the Redhawk order (Boggetto, Williams, Evans, and Fisher) combined for nine hits, nine runs, 10 RBI, and four walks in the game. The Redhawks, who ranked third in the country in walks entering the weekend, drew 16 off SIUE pitching Sunday.
Greg Mosel (3-1) picked up the win for Southeast on the mound. He and Alex Siddle each pitched two and two-third innings in relief. Matthew Wade pitched the ninth inning to close the game.
Chase Green and Tursi each had a pair of hits for the Cougars. Jarrett Bednar (0-4) recorded the loss. He pitched three and a third innings, allowing nine runs on nine hits.
MURRAY STATE 8-8, EASTERN ILLINOIS 4-2
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Murray State baseball team won both games of a doubleheader Sunday to earn its first series sweep of the season as the Racers won all three games against Eastern Illinois over the weekend. MSU won game one of the day 8-4 and took the second 8-2 to push its record to 11-17 overall and 7-5 in OVC play.
In game one, the Racers scored the first three runs of the game, scoring two in the second inning and adding a third run in the third. A Nick Moore sacrifice fly opened the scoring on the day as he brought home Anthony Bayus. Derek Yoder came around to score on a throwing error on the play. Yoder scored five total runs in the two games of the day.
A Tyler Lawrence RBI double to right scored Matt McGowan to push the MSU lead to 3-0. EIU fought back however, scoring two unearned runs in the bottom of the third and tied the game at 3-3 in the fourth. After Lawrence’s second RBI of the game, the Panthers (0-20, 0-9 OVC) tied the game again with a sacrifice fly in the fifth.
The Racers were able to retake the lead for good in the sixth when Yoder scored from third base on a wild pitch to make it 5-4, before a three-run eighth inning for the Racers busted the game open. A Taylor Mathews RBI bunt made it 6-4 and Yoder scored on another error to make it 7-4 in favor of the Racers. Nick Moore doubled down the right field line later in the inning to score Mathews to round-out the scoring for MSU.
Brad Boegel picked up his first career win in the contest. Boegel pitched a complete game for the Racers and allowed just two earned runs off of eight hits while striking-out four batters.
In the second game of the day, the Racers found themselves trailing for the first time in the series as EIU scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning to jump out to an early lead. MSU wouldn’t trail for long as it got three runs in the top of the second thanks to another run off of a Panther error and a Nick Moore two RBI single to make it 3-2.
Murray State got one run in the fourth on a Bayus RBI single and added two more in the fourth on a passed ball and a fielder’s choice to make the score 6-2. Back-to-back doubles in the seventh by Mathews and Moore pushed the lead to 8-2.
Brandon Hicks picked up his first win of the season in relief for the Racers. Hicks pitched five scoreless innings and allowed just three hits while striking-out three. Sheldon Baxter got the start on the mound and pitched two innings and allowed two earned to go along with two strikeouts.
For the doubleheader, Moore and Bayus each led the Racers by going 3-for-7. Bayus scored three runs and added an RBI while Moore collected a team-high five RBIs on the day. Mathews also added three runs scored in the two wins and he and Lawrence each added a pair of RBIs.
AIR FORCE 7, JACKSONVILLE STATE 4
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Jacksonville State baseball team saw its seven-game winning streak halted with a 7-4 setback in the final game of the series with Air Force on Sunday at Rudy Abbott Field.
The loss is the first since dropping a road contest at Alabama State on March 18. The Gamecocks were able to take the series with the Falcons after wins back-to-back wins on Friday and Saturday. JSU drops to 16-9 overall, while Air Force snapped a six-game losing skid and completes a nine-game road trip.
For the second consecutive day, JSU came from behind after the Falcons scored a two-out run on Tyler Jones' double off of Gamecock starter Jake Walsh.
Jax State responded with a three-run bottom half of the third that was highlighted by Josh Bobo's double down the left field line that scored Hayden White. The Gamecocks plated an unearned run on the play after a relay throwing error by the Falcons shortstop. Paschal Petrongolo plated Bobo with a ground ball to third.
Walsh, a freshman from Melbourne, Florida, started strong with a season-high seven strikeouts before running in to trouble in the fifth. Air Force's Spencer Draws belted a one-out solo home run to right field off of Walsh to cut the lead to 3-2. After a Noah Pierce infield single, Jones posted a two-run home run over the left field fence to give the Falcons a 4-3 lead.
The contest remained a 4-3 standstill until the JSU seventh and after two outs in the frame. Senior Ryan Sebra tallied a two-out hit, followed by a double by junior Elliot McCummings. The Gamecocks were gifted a run after a balk call on Air Force pitcher Michael Rieker. McCummings finished the day as JSU's top hitter with three hits.
With the game deadlocked at 4-all late in the contest, the Falcons scored three runs over the final two innings to take the lead. Air Force re-gained the lead in the eighth with a pair of unearned runs off of JSU reliever Dalton Etheridge. Travis Wilkie scored the go-ahead run after reaching base with a leadoff single. Pierce lifted a fly ball to right to score Adam Groesbeck for the sixth run.
JSU tried to mount a comeback and looked like it had taken a 7-6 lead on a Petrongolo drive that near the right field foul pole that was ruled foul by a few feet. The Gamecocks had two on after a leadoff walk by Hayden White and a Bobo walk.
Air Force added an insurance run in the ninth after perfecting the squeeze bunt.
Etheridge was saddled with his first loss of the season, while Rieker notched his first win of the season. Steven Trojan pitched the final two innings for Air Force to earn his first save of the season.