FRIDAY'S SCORES
Austin Peay 17, @Eastern Kentucky 3
Eastern Illinois 5, @Belmont 3
@Morehead State 13, SIUE 9
@Tennessee Tech 11, Murray State 4
@Southeast Missouri 5, Jacksonville State 4
UT Martin 6, @#15 Missouri State 2
AUSTIN PEAY 17, EASTERN KENTUCKY 3
RICHMOND, Ky. - Starting pitcher Alex Robles put together another quality start and got a ton of run support as Austin Peay State University’s baseball team posted a 17-3 Ohio Valley Conference victory against Eastern Kentucky, Friday night at Turkey Hughes Field.
Robles (4-2), who notched his third consecutive win, had three runs of support before he even walked to the mound as the Govs offense struck for three runs in the top of the first. Third baseman Logan Gray, right fielder Josh Wilson and Robles each had run-scoring hits in the frame.
Austin Peay (21-14, 12-7 OVC) kept the offense rolling in the game’s first half. The Govs added a run in the second, four runs in the third and another four runs in the fifth. In the third, first baseman Dre Gleason and catcher Ridge Smith each had two-run base hits as the Govs lead grew to 8-1.
The Govs finally chased Eastern Kentucky starter Logan Hershenow in the fifth. Center fielder Patrick Massoni hit a RBI double and three batters later left fielder Cayce Bredlau hit a three-run home run to push the APSU lead to 12-1 and end Hershenow’s night.
Eastern Kentucky (12-21, 5-9 OVC) was given a chance to climb back into the game after Hershenow’s departure as reliever Caleb Johnson held the Govs scoreless for the next three innings.
However, Robles had settled in after allowing a run in the first. He faced just nine batters over the next three innings and the lone batter he allowed on base during that stretch he picked off.
The Colonels took advantage of a pair Austin Peay errors in the fourth to scratch out a pair of runs against Robles. Second baseman Doug Teegarden drove in a run on a fielder’s choice and third baseman Mandy Alvarez added a run with a RBI single, cutting the deficit to 12-3.
But those were the last runs Eastern Kentucky would score. Robles would allow two base runners the rest of his outing, retiring the Colonels in order in the eighth to end his night. He threw eight innings without allowing a walk – extending his streak to 17 innings without a walk – and allowed one earned run (three runs) on five hits.
Austin Peay tacked on five runs in the ninth to set the final score. Chase Hamilton hit a two-run pinch hit home run and Gray added a three-run home run to left center.
Smith, who batted leadoff for the second straight game, went 5-for-5 with a double and scored twice. Gray and Bredlau each had four RBI while Smith, Gleason and Hamilton each had two RBI.
Hershenow (2-6) surrendered 12 runs on 14 hits in his 4.1-inning outing. Johnson, who followed him on the mound, allowed one hit in 3.2 scoreless innings.
Alvarez led the Eastern Kentucky offense with a 2-for-4, one RBI outing.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 5, BELMONT 3
NASHVILLE - Three Eastern Illinois pitchers held the nation’s third ranked offense to just three runs on Friday evening as EIU beat Belmont, 5-3, to win the opening game of a three game Ohio Valley Conference series.
EIU won its third straight game improving to 6-26 overall, 3-13 in the OVC. Belmont fell to 20-16, 9-6 in the OVC.
The Panthers jumped on the board in the top of the second inning using the long ball as Demetre Taylor hit his fifth home run of the season, a two-run shot that scored Brant Valach. Bobby Wenthe gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead with a solo homer following Taylor’s home run.
Drew Ferguson had an RBI double and Tyler Fullerton an RBI single as they brought the Bruins to within one run in the third inning. Tyler Walsh tied the game with an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth that chased EIU starter Andy Fisher. Fisher worked five plus innings.
Chase Thurston and Matt Wivinis then shutdown Belmont for the final four innings not allowing a hit. Thurston (2-0) worked three innings for the win while Wivinis picked up his first save with a scoreless ninth.
EIU took advantage of two Belmont errors in the top of the ninth as they scored two runs against reliever Matthew Kinney (1-5). Mitch Gasbarro came around to score the winning run after pinch running for Jason Scholl.
Marshawn Taylor and Caleb Howell both went 2-for-5 for EIU. Ferguson, Fullerton and Walsh had two hits each for Belmont.
MOREHEAD STATE 13, SIUE 9
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Senior catcher Chris Robinson was a career-best 5-for-5, including a two-run homer, and added four RBI to help propel the Morehead State baseball team to a 13-9 series-opening victory over SIU Edwardsville Friday at Allen Field.
MSU, which won its sixth straight league game, improved to 23-14 overall and 9-7 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Eagles have won 12 of their last 13 games. SIUE, which owns all its wins against OVC competition, fell to 12-18 overall and 12-7 in the league.
Robinson, who ranks second on the squad with 17 multi-hit efforts and was a triple shy of the cycle today, was one of four Eagles with two or more hits. He upped his batting average to a league-best .411. MSU finished with 16 hits, its 13th game in the last 14 with double-digit hits. The Eagles lead the nation in batting average and on-base percentage.
Senior leftfielder Nick Newell extended his hitting streak to 16 with a 3-for-5 outing. Newell drove in three runs, while senior rightfielder Brandon Rawe upped his hitting string to a team-best 18 with a 2-for-4 day. Rawe joined Robinson by scoring four times each. Sophomore centerfielder Ryan Kent also lengthened his hitting spree to 16 games with two in the game, and senior designated hitter Blaine Tanner was 2-for-2.
SIUE third baseman Skylar Geissinger, who produced eight RBI in the series with MSU last year, knocked in five. His first-inning, bases-clearing double lifted the visitors to a quick 3-0 advantage. First baseman Alec Saikal was 4-for-5, while second baseman Chase Green and catcher Parker Guinn had two hits as well. Guinn was one of three Cougars to belt a home run.
Sophomore pitcher Luke Humphreys allowed six runs and nine hits in six innings but was credited with the victory to improve to a team-best 5-1. Sophomore Cable Wright and junior Matt Anderson also saw action on the mound.
Ryan Daniels tossed the final four frames, giving up seven runs, to fall to 2-5.
The teams traded scoring opportunities through three stanzas, with the game knotted at 5-5. The Cougars pushed ahead 6-5 on Saikal's round-tripper in the fifth, but Robinson slugged his long ball in the bottom of that frame, and MSU never relinquished the lead. The Eagles sent 10 men to the plate in the seventh to score four times and added two in the eighth.
TENNESSEE TECH 11, MURRAY STATE 4
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - The defense was out in full force for the Tennessee Tech baseball team Friday evening, as the Golden Eagles (16-19, 9-10) used several highlight-reel plays (not to mention a huge, offensive explosion in the seventh inning) to down Ohio Valley Conference rival Murray State (14-25, 9-7), 11-4, in the first of a three-game set.
Right from the start, things seemed like they were headed for a pitcher's duel as both sides traded zeros on the scoreboard over the first three innings. That's not to say that there weren't excellent chances on each end.
In the top of the second, senior catcher Jordan Hopkins put a long ride on a ball that seemed destined for the trees beyond right center field. The ball would fall just short, finding its way into the glove of the Murray State right fielder, Matthew Johnson, at the warning track.
In the top of the fourth, Racer first baseman Anthony Bayus led off the frame with a double to left center field, putting the visitors in excellent position for an early lead. That opportunity was nearly reality, as catcher Tyler Lawrence laced a ball into center fielder, inches from dropping for a base hit.
Tech center fielder David Allen and his glove said no, however, as the senior made an incredible diving grab to save a sure run. The Golden Eagles then doubled up Bayus, who was determined to have missed the bag on a tag-up attempt. It marked the first of two double plays by the Tech defense on the night.
Ending the inning came down to the glove of right fielder Anthony El Chibani, who provided yet another stellar play on defense for the Golden Eagles. Tracking a high foul off the bat of Matthew Johnson, the sophomore corralled the ball just as he hit the fence in front of the Murray State bullpen, holding on for the final out of the inning despite bouncing back off the fence.
The first two batters of the bottom half of the fourth for Tech provided more foreshadowing than anything else, as All-American Dylan Bosheers sent off a long fly ball that was caught at the right field fence and first baseman Chase Chambers crushed a ball to dead center field that was snagged at the warning track.
There was no catching the next ball sent to the outfield, however, as freshman designated hitter Ryan Flick launched a towering shot on a 1-0 pitch over the fence in right center field, giving the Golden Eagles a 2-0 lead. The home run marked the seventh of the season for the youngster and also propelled his team-leading RBI total to 40 for the year.
In the top of the fifth, it was more of the same on the defensive side of the ball for the Tech squad, as Bosheers proved just why he was dubbed OVC Preseason Player of the Year. With a runner on first and no outs in the frame, the shortstop made an unbelievable diving snag towards the third base side. He then used his gold glove caliber skills to launch a hard toss over his shoulder to second base while falling the opposite direction. Second baseman Jake Farr collected the pass for the first out before making the quick transfer and fantastic throw to nab the second runner for the double play.
Both pitchers continued to trade outs for the next two innings, approaching the seventh inning remarkably quickly. In the top half, Murray State tried to take advantage of its best scoring opportunity of the game, putting runners on first and second to lead off the frame. A sac bunt put both in scoring position and Nick Moore coming to the plate, just a base hit away from tying the contest.
Yet another outstanding defensive segment kept that dream from becoming a reality, as Farr made his own sliding stop on a ground ball (that nearly made its way into the outfield) and executed the throw to first for the second out. Instead of two runs across, the junior cut it down to one, keeping the 2-1, Golden Eagle lead intact.
Senior reliever Jeb Scoggins came on for the last out of the inning, and it didn't take long for the righty to end it. After two quick strikes on Racer designated hitter Dalton West, Scoggins worked to pitches outside the zone before fooling the batter with a filthy bender high and out of the zone.
A closer by trade, Scoggins night would actually be over as the Golden Eagle offense left little doubt as to who would win the ball game after the seventh inning.
In the bottom half, Tech plated three consecutive runners with Hopkins and Flick each singling and Farr reaching on a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt attempt. The Racer defense did manage to record two outs before the bottom fell out, but with Tyler Brazelton coming to the plate, Tech fans could almost sense something big was about to happen.
The sophomore patiently watched as four straight offerings avoided the strike zone, taking a free base and RBI to give Tech a little insurance and a 3-1 lead. David Allen took the plate next, watching a wild pitch run by to allow another Golden Eagle runner to cross and bump up the advantage to 4-1. Allen then worked a seven-pitch walk to reload the bases for the always dangerous Bosheers.
He nearly saw his own walk, taking three straight balls before a strike was delivered. The senior then offered on the next pitch, just missing the sweet spot of the bat and sending a towering fly ball to left field that was sure to be the final out of the inning. The only problem was, left fielder Derek Yoder lost the ball in the lights (a problem that allowed a Racer run to cross later in the contest), leading to a bases-clearing double by Bosheers that broke the contest wide open with a 7-1 lead for the Golden Eagles.
Four more Tech runs would cross before the inning finally saw a conclusion, with all nine runs in the frame coming in as unearned due to the earlier miscue. All in all, 15 batters stepped into the box for the Golden Eagles in the frame, while four drew walks and one more was hit by a pitch.
Murray State did manage to put up a three-spot in the top of the eighth inning, grabbing a couple of unearned runs off a Golden Eagle miscue. But the deficit proved to be just too much as the Tech squad collected the game one victory, 11-4.
With the win, the Tech squad moved to within one game of the .500 mark in conference play. The Golden Eagles also moved to 6-2 in their past eight games.
Senior hurler Chris Chism picked up his league-leading sixth victory of the season on the night, tossing six and two thirds innings, allowing just one earned run and scattering five hits. He finished with two strikeouts in the outing while walking none.
Offensively, Bosheers led the way with two doubles in five at bats. He drove in a team-high three runs while scoring one as well. Flick scored three runs while going 2-for-4 with his seventh long ball of the year. Eight of the Tech batters scored at least one run in the contest while six different Golden Eagles drove in at least one run.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 5, JACKSONVILLE STATE 4
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Branden Boggetto's walk-off home run in the ninth inning lifted the Southeast Missouri baseball team past Jacksonville State in game one of the three-game series Friday evening, 5-4.
Boggetto blasted two home runs in the game, finishing 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs.
Southeast holds sole of first-place in the Ohio Valley Conference with the victory as they climb to 14-5 in league play and 23-14 overall. Jacksonville State falls to 19-17 on the season and 7-9 in OVC play.
Jacksonville State plated a run in the first inning with a pair of doubles by Clayton Daniel and Tyler Gamble. JSU led 1-0 after a half inning. The Gamecocks extended the lead to 2-0 in the third inning with a sacrifice fly by Paschal Petrongolo.
Southeast got on the board in the fourth inning when Dalton Hewitt drove in Andy Lennington, narrowing the JSU lead to 2-1. Southeast not only tied the game in the fifth, but took their first lead of the game. Boggetto led off the inning with a solo home run to right, tying the game at two runs apiece. After Garrett Gandolfo grounded into a bases-loaded 3-2-3 double play, Lennington followed it up with a double down the left field line to plate a pair of runs and take a 4-2 lead on the Gamecocks.
Gamble hit a two-out solo home run in the sixth inning to narrow the Redhawk lead to 4-3. ith Gamble on first and two out in the eighth inning, Ryan Sebra doubled to right center, scoring Gamble and tying the game. The inning ended on a fantastic play at short by Boggetto to preserve the tie.
Boggetto stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth and blasted the second pitch of the inning over the left field wall to walk off on Jacksonville State, 5-4. It was his second home run of the game and his team-leading seventh of the season.
Southeast outhit JSU, 9-7. Lennington was the only other Redhawk with a multi-hit game going 2-for-4 with two RBI.
Joey Lucchesi got a no decision in the game. Lucchesi pitched seven complete innings, allowing three runs on five hits. He fanned eight hitters and walked two. Matthew Wade (2-0) picked up the win in releif. Wade pitched two innings out of the pen. Wade allowed the tying run in the sixth inning.
Gamble finished 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored for JSU. Daniel added a pair of hits in the game.
Zachary Fowler worked seven innings for the Gamecocks. He allowed four runs on eight hits. Joe McGuire (0-2) suffered the loss after allowing Boggetto's walk-off home run.
UT MARTIN 6, #15 MISSOURI STATE 2
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Freshman left-handed pitcher Matt Poteete consistently pounded the strike zone for nine innings while his offense provided plenty of run support early in the University of Tennessee at Martin’s impressive 6-2 victory at No. 15 Missouri State this evening.
Poteete improved to 2-2 on the season after his commanding performance on the mound tonight. He went the distance – allowing only two runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out a career-high eight batters over nine innings. The Humboldt, Tenn. native fired 88 of his 119 pitches for strikes.
At the plate, Nico Zych went 2-for-4 with four RBI’s while Andrew Castillo added two hits, two runs scored and two RBI’s. Taylor Douglas (three hits, two runs scored), Matt Hirsch (two hits, two walks, run scored) and Fletcher Johnson (run scored) also contributed offensively for UT Martin, who improved to 11-24 on the season by outhitting the Bears by a 12-7 margin.
The Skyhawk offense got off to a quick start, scoring a pair of runs on three hits in the first inning. Castillo and Douglas each singled with one away and Zych followed by ripping the first pitch he saw for a two-run double to give UT Martin the early advantage.
Poteete pitched around a pair of baserunners in the bottom half of the inning, tallying a pair of strikeouts to shutout Missouri State (25-9), who is ranked No. 15 nationally in this week’s Baseball America poll.
UT Martin then padded their lead with three runs on four hits in the top of the second. Hirsch singled to lead off the inning and stole second to put himself in scoring position. Johnson then singled and stole second to put runners on second and third for Castillo, who clubbed a two-run double to center to make the score 4-0. After Douglas was issued an intentional walk with two outs, Zych came through once again with a single to plate Castillo and extend the Skyhawk advantage out to 5-0.
Poteete would register two more strikeouts in the second but the Bears pushed across one run to cut UT Martin’s lead back to four runs.
After another shutdown inning by Poteete in the third, the Skyhawks tacked on another run in the fourth. Douglas roped a triple down the right field line to open the top of the frame and he came in to score just five pitches later when Zych once again manufactured the run with a sacrifice fly out to center.
Poteete cruised through the fourth, retiring the side in order on seven pitches. Missouri State scored once in the fifth but Poteete avoided the big inning by stranding a pair of runners and getting some help from Castillo, who threw out a runner at home for the second out of the inning.
From that point on, Poteete was nearly untouchable – as he retired 13 of the final 14 batters he faced. He fanned the first two batters on his way to another three-up, three-down inning in the sixth and did not allow a ball out of the infield in a scoreless seventh. He needed only nine pitches to get out of the eighth inning unscathed before finishing out his remarkable effort with 11 pitches in a perfect ninth.