SATURDAY'S SCORES
SIUE 8, @Jacksonville State 4
Morehead State 7, @Tennessee Tech 5
UT Martin 6-1, @Murray State 3-2
@Belmont 14, Quinnipiac 4
Bradley 5,
@Belmont 2
SIUE 8, JACKSONVILLE STATE 4
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Nick Lombardo and Parker Guinn each drove in a pair of runs Saturday as SIUE baseball opened Ohio Valley Conference play with an 8-4 road win over Jacksonville State.
The Cougars improved to 1-0 in OVC and 1-8 overall. Jacksonville State dropped to 6-4 and 0-1 in the OVC.
Brett Thomas (1-1) tossed 3 1/3 innings in relief to earn the win. Thomas struck out five and allowed a run on five hits.
Zach Malach earned his first save of the year with a perfect inning and a third. He struck out three. Malach entered in the eighth with the Cougars up 7-4 and the tying run at the plate.
Guinn got the Cougars on the board in the second inning. Chase Green reached on an error to open the inning before Guinn connected on a 3-1 pitch to left center to make it 2-0 Cougars.
The Cougars added an unearned run in the third inning. Nick Lombardo reached on an error before Denton Reed reached on catcher's interference. Both hitters advanced on a wild pitch. Alec Saikal lifted a sacrifice fly to center to put SIUE on top 3-0.
Dustin Woodcock added a long, two-out RBI triple to bring Skyler Geissinger home in the fourth inning. Geissinger had singled with two outs. JSU leftfielder Paul Angel cut the Cougar lead in half with a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Ryan Daniels tossed four innings and did not figure into the decision. He allowed three runs on five hits. He struck out three and walked three.
The Gamecocks tied the game, 4-4, with a two-run single by E McCummings with the bases loaded. The hit came against SIUE reliever Brett Thomas. With the game still tied 4-4, Lombardo tripled to lead off the seventh inning and Sakail laced a one-out single down the right field line to break the tie.
Zachary Fowler started and suffered the loss for JSU. He tossed 6 1/3 innings and allowed five runs, three earned, on six hits.
Lombardo singled to drive home a pair in the eighth inning to make it 7-4 Cougars. Guinn added an RBI hit in the ninth to stretch the lead to 9-4. Guinn and Lombardo each were 2 for 5. Guinn drove in three, while Lombardo added two RBIs. Woodcock also had two hits and an RBI. Wright was 1 for 4.
Ryan Sebra and Paschal Petrongolo each had two hits for the Gamecocks.
MOREHEAD STATE 7, TENNESSEE TECH 5
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Morehead State's 2-6 batters in the lineup combined for nine hits and seven RBI as the Eagle baseball team opened Ohio Valley Conference play with a 7-5 victory at Tennessee Tech's Bush Stadium Saturday night.
Morehead State, which hasn't played a home game yet in 2015, improved to 7-3 overall and 1-0 in the conference. The victory marks MSU's fastest ascent to seven wins to open a season since 1994. Five of the wins have come by margins of two or less runs. TTU slipped to 5-6 overall and 0-1 in the league. It was the program's first victory at Tech since May 4, 2012.
Senior first baseman Kane Sweeney led the offense, which produced a season-best 13 hits, by going 3-for-5 with two RBI, while senior shortstop Robby Spencer and senior left-fielder Nick Newell added two hits each. Sweeney moved his hitting streak to five games, while he and Spencer have now reached base in all 10 games.
Senior right-fielder Brandon Rawe contributed two RBI, while senior catcher Chris Robinson scored a career-high four runs and smashed his first triple of the campaign.
Freshman left-hander Aaron Leasher was credited with his first collegiate victory. The Michigan native allowed just one hit and two runs in 1.2 innings in relief of right-handed starter Aaron Goe. Goe tossed the first five, scattered six hits and surrendered three earned runs. Junior closer Craig Pearcy retired the final four Golden Eagle hitters for his league-leading fourth save of the season.
Morehead State jumped on top 3-0 after three frames, but the host team tied the game on a two-run homer by Preseason OVC Player of the Year Dylan Bosheers in the fifth. David Allen ripped a two-out double off Goe just before Bosheer's bomb.
Sweeney belted an RBI double in the seventh, and Rawe plated a man with a ground out. Ryan Flick doubled home a pair to pull Tech to within 6-5 in the bottom of that frame, but Spencer knocked in Robinson with an insurance tally in the ninth.
The hosts finished with 10 hits. Catcher Jordan Hopkins, right-fielder Anthony El Chibani and first baseman Chase Chambers each had two apiece.
John Gora was saddled with the loss to fall to 0-3. The right-handed hurler gave up nine hits and five of the seven runs.
UT MARTIN 6-1, MURRAY STATE 3-2
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team picked up a 6-3 win in its Ohio Valley Conference opener today before falling 1-0 in the doubleheader nightcap against the Murray State Racers.
The Skyhawk pitching staff posted a 2.12 ERA in 17 innings today, allowing only 11 hits (nine singles) for a .190 opponent batting average. Freshman right-hander Michael Fidler (four innings, two runs on two hits) earned the win in relief in Game 1 with Patrick Bernard (three strikeouts in two scoreless innings) earning his second save of the season. Daniel Shaw (Game 1 start, one run on two hits in three innings), Carter Smith (one earned run, six strikeouts in seven innings of Game 2) and Matt Poteete (one perfect relief inning in Game 2) also saw time on the mound today for UT Martin, who is 2-8 overall with a 1-1 OVC mark.
At the plate, Taylor Douglas scored twice and piled up four hits in eight at-bats today while Andrew Castillo and Jake Deason each pieced together three hits. Nico Zych drove in a pair of runs to lead the Skyhawks today, who outhit Murray State by a 17-11 margin.
These two teams will meet for a rubber match to determine a series winner on Sunday, March 8 at 12 p.m.
In game one UT Martin pushed four runs across the plate in the top of the eighth to beat the defending OVC Pitcher of the Year Brock Downey in the Game 1 victory.
The Racers scored a run in the bottom of the first but the Skyhawks came back to tie the game in their next at-bat. Luis Paublini singled to right field to open the frame and Matt Hirsch reached after he was hit by a pitch. Castillo then singled to load the bases with no outs and two pitches later, Mikey Nantze brought in Paublini with a squeeze bunt to even the contest at 1-all.
Shaw then kept Murray State off the scoreboard in each of the next two innings before giving way to Fidler, who needed only nine pitches to breeze through a perfect bottom of the fourth.
The Skyhawks took their first lead of the game in the top of the fifth. Douglas lined a two-out double down the left field line and Zych followed with an RBI single to result in a 2-1 UT Martin advantage.
Murray State scored two runs with two outs in the fifth to briefly reclaim the lead. Fidler then retired the side in order in both the sixth and seventh innings to give the Skyhawks a chance to win in the late innings.
UT Martin rewarded Fidler with four runs in the top of the eighth. Douglas drew a leadoff walk and five pitches later, Zych found the gap for a triple out to right field to tie the score at 3-all. Following a pitching change, Zych scored the go-ahead run on an error and Castillo followed with a RBI single to plate Hirsch. With two away, Andrew Massey ripped a 2-0 pitch for an opposite-field triple to score Castillo and make the score 6-3 in favor of the Skyhawks.
Bernard then tallied a pair of strikeouts in the bottom of the eighth and pitched around pair of two-out singles to record the final out via a called strikeout to clinch UT Martin’s win.
In game two the Skyhawks took a 1-0 lead through five innings but Murray State was able to scratch out two unanswered runs to close out the game.
UT Martin placed baserunners on the corners with one out in the top of the first but could not manufacture a run. Smith then began his tremendous outing by stranding a pair of Racers in the bottom half of the frame to keep the game scoreless.
Smith then found his groove. After issuing back-to-back walks to begin the second inning, he retired 12 consecutive batters until Murray State led off the sixth inning with a single.
Meanwhile, the UT Martin offense got on the scoreboard in the top of the fifth. Deason singled with one out and swiped second base during the following at-bat. Zych (reached on an error) and Paublini (walk) then reached to load the bases for Matt Hirsch, who took a walk on five pitches to score Deason.
Smith recorded two strikeouts in the aforementioned sixth inning but the Racers were able to tie the game at 1-all on a sacrifice fly.
Murray State was able to put a man in scoring position in the seventh inning but Smith buckled down, recording the final out on a called strikeout to keep the score 1-1.
However, the Racers were able to generate a run early in the bottom of the eighth before Poteete came in and picked up three outs on four pitches.
UT Martin had the heart of its order up in the top of the ninth but the Skyhawks could not put the potential tying run on the basepaths.
BELMONT 14, QUINNIPIAC 4
NASHVILLE - The Bruins faced Quinnipiac in game one and came out victorious with a 14-4 win over the Bobcats.
In game one against Quinnipiac, starting on the mound was Aaron Quillen(Kingsport, Tenn). Quillen pitched 5 innings for the Bruins and was awarded the Win, he is now (2-1) for the year and struck out 6 batters and only allowed 3 runs, one earned, on 6 hits.
Leading at the plate for the Bruins was senior Matt Beaty (Dresden, Tenn). Beaty went 4 for 6 at the plate with three runs and 3 RBI.
Quinnipiac put a run on the board early in the top of the first so the Bruins fought back in the bottom of the inning with three runs. Beaty started off the the hits with a double to right center, Tyler Fullerton (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) followed suit with a double to left center to plate Beaty. Nick Egli (Brentwood, Tenn.) drew a walk and was plated by a double from Tyler Walsh (Evansville, Ind.). The Bruins scored 3 runs in the first inning on three hits.
In the second, the Bruins returned to the plate ready to hit. William Dodd (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) led of with a double to left field. Alec Diamond (Kennesaw, Ga.) reached base on a hit by pitch and Drew Ferguson (Knoxville, Tenn.) reached first on an infield error which advanced Diamond. Matt Beaty in his second at bat drove a single to center field to plate Dodd. With the bases loaded Quinnipiac's pitchers walked in two straight runs. The Bruins scored four runs off two hits in the bottom of the second.
Two scoreless innings for the bruins brought a 4 run inning bottom of the 5th. William Dodd went two for four at the plate and hit a triple in the 5th to center field. Diamond drew a walk and stole second to put himself in scoring position. Drew Ferguson went 2 for five at the plate and hit a triple in the 5th down the right field line to plate both Dodd and Diamond. Ferguson then crossed the plate on a groundout by Beaty to second. Fullerton Reached second on an outfield error and advanced to third on a wild pitch. He was plated by an infield single from Walsh.
The Bruins were able to get 3 more runs across the plate in the bottom of the 8th to secure the lead with a single from Joe Stovall (Collierville, Tenn.), a double from Beaty and a home run from freshman Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.).
BRADLEY 5, BELMONT 2
NASHVILLE - In the second game of the day against Bradley, Belmont couldn't find their footing with only 5 hits in the game.
In the Bruins second tilt of the day against the Bradley Braves, the bats we saw in the first game did not return with as much power. The Bruins who showed 14 hits in the game against Quinnipiac came up short with only 5 hits in the second game.
On the mound for the Bruins in game two was senior lefty Dan Ludwig (Naperville, Ill.). Ludwig (0-1) pitched 7 innings for the Bruins and matched his career high of 12 strikeouts against 31 batters faced. Ludwig only gave up 2 walks and 3 runs on 9 hits.
Bradley tacked on one run early in the game in the top of the first with three singles to score a run. Belmont was able to respond with a run in the bottom of the second to tie the game 1-1 with a solo homerun by junior Desi Ammons (Hohenwald, Tenn.).
The Braves plated to more runs in the 4th and held the Bruins to two scoreless innings before Ferguson hit a triple to center bottom of the 5th. Fullerton followed closely with a single to left field to score Ferguson. Beaty drew a walk, but the runners were left stranded.
The Braves held the Bruins scoreless through the final four innings to take the win 5-2.