THURSDAY'S SCORES
@Morehead State 16, SIUE 3
@Belmont 10, Eastern Illinois 1
@Eastern Kentucky 5, Austin Peay 4 (11)
@Southeast Missouri 7, Jacksonville State 6
@Tennessee Tech 4, Murray State 2
@Wright State 14,
UT Martin 0
MOREHEAD STATE 16, SIUE 3
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Juniors Tyler Niemann and Braxton Morris combined for 11 RBI, and the Morehead State baseball team took advantage of four errors by the OVC's top fielding team to open the SIU Edwardsville series with a 16-3 triumph at Allen Field Thursday.
First baseman Niemann pounded a pair of two-out, three-run homers for six RBI, while second baseman Morris went 4-for-5 with five runs knocked in as the Eagles saw all nine batting order spots score at least one run.
The Eagles put a halt to a five-game losing skid and improved to 23-11 overall and 9-4 in the OVC. MSU has now won nine of the last 10 games in the SIUE series. Morehead State is now 49-11 at Allen Field since 2015. The Cougars slipped to 17-16 overall and 6-10 in the league.
While the bats were pounding away at two SIUE pitchers, Eagle starter Aaron Leasher improved to 6-1 (setting a career best for season victories) by surrendering just two earned runs and striking out a quartet in six frames. Junior righty Seth Boyle tossed two scoreless innings, and freshman righthander John Hurayt III closed the door with a couple of strikeouts in the ninth. Those three only gave up five hits in the nine frames.
Sophomore leftfielder Niko Hulsizer also joined the offensive onslaught with a three-hit night and scored four runs. He cranked his team-best 13th home run of the game in the seventh, the Eagles' final run. Hulsizer extended his team-best reached-base streak to 18 games. Morris recorded RBI singles in the first, fourth and sixth innings and hammered an RBI double to the wall in left centerfield in the third inning.
Only two of the first nine Morehead State runs ended up being earned as SIUE, which entered the game leaders in the OVC with a .980 team fielding percentage, committed three errors in the field and a catcher's interference for a fourth mistake.
BELMONT 10, EASTERN ILLINOIS 1
NASHVILLE - Junior right-handed hurler Tyler Vaughn (Jonesboro, Ill.) orchestrated an impressive complete-game performance on the hill as Belmont baseball shined in a 10-1 victory over Eastern Illinois Thursday afternoon at E.S. Rose Park.
Five different Bruins logged multiple hits to help contribute to their 10-run win. Half of the team's runs came in the form of a long ball courtesy of three Bruins - senior Nick Egli (Brentwood, Tenn.), redshirt-freshman Matt Cogen (Franlin, Tenn.) and sophomore Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) . Junior Rafael Bournigal (Mulberry, Fla.) pieced together a 3-for-4 outing, while Egli reached base in all four of his plate appearances to highlight game one.
Belmont (15-17, 10-6) came out of the gates blazing to open the series as Vaughn (Jonesboro, Ill.) only used up 13 pitches to register a swift pair of three up, three down frames. Sandwiched between Vaughn's first two trips to the mound, Egli launched a solo shot over the centerfield wall on the very first pitch he saw to give the Bruins a 1-0 advantage.
BU continued to tack on the runs in the second, putting up two on a three-hit stanza. Senior Tyler Walsh (Zionsville, Ind.) got things started with a single through the left side before junior Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.) wore a pitch to allow BU to threaten with one down. Belmont then constructed consecutive RBI hits to make it 3-0 before Eastern Illinois (7-26, 3-10) had even recorded a base runner. Senior Clay Payne (Powell, Tenn.) drilled a base shot up the middle to double the Bruins advantage before Bournigal sent a a two-bagger of his own to left center to plate the squad's third run.
Veteran's Egli and Walsh each registered their second hits of the contest while collectively making it three consecutive frames in which Belmont registered a run. Egli led off the third with a single to left field and would later advance to second on a throwing error by the Panthers. With two down, Walsh found favor with a bounce and collected a RBI double to put BU up, 4-0.
Vaughn continued to wreak havoc on the Panther batters through the first five innings. The Jonesboro, Ill. product registered three 1-2-3 stanzas, never relinquishing a single hit and only allowing two base runners on a walk and hit-by-pitch during that span. He collected five strikeouts while retiring 15 of the first 17 Panthers he faced. The righty's no-hit bid was broken up in the sixth after Eastern Illinois' Jimmy Govern sneaked a bunt to Vaughn who was unable to throw him out despite a diving snag to collect the ball.
Belmont separated themselves for good in the sixth frame, posting six runs with the help of back-to-back long balls and a couple of Panther miscues. Senior Drake Byrd (Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) sparked the offense with a standup double before a single from Bournigal and consecutive EIU errors scored two runs. Cogen continued to ride on the one-pitch magic as he swung at the first thing he saw and lifted one over the right center wall for a three-run bomb. Holland duplicated Cogen's play by catapulting BU's third home run to right field and increased the Bruins lead, 10-0.
Everything continued to click for Vaughn on the mound as he compiled his fourth inning where he sat down the Panthers in order. It wouldn't be until the final frame that EIU could find an answer to Vaughn's potion. The Panthers collected three of their four hits in their final trip to the plate, scoring their lone run of the contest to make it a 10-1 game.
This afternoon's outing was the first time that a Bruin hurler would go the distance this season and it was only Vaughn's second career complete game performance. He finished the day with six strike outs, a pair of walks and one run on four hits to his name.
EASTERN KENTUCKY 5, AUSTIN PEAY 4 (11)
RICHMOND, Ky. - Senior Logan Starnes legged out an infield single with a runner on third and two outs in the bottom of the 11th inning to give the Eastern Kentucky University baseball team a 5-4 win over Austin Peay in the series opener on Thursday at Earle Combs Stadium.
Ryland Kerr began the 11th inning with a walk. He moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and then to third on a ground ball to second. Starnes sent an 0-1 pitch down the line to third and beat the throw to first.
Game two of the series is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. The official grand opening ceremony for the new Earle Combs Stadium will begin at 5:45 p.m. Members of the Combs family along with other dignitaries will participate in the ceremony.
The Colonels (20-14, 6-7 OVC) took the lead with a 3-run fourth inning. Kerr scored on a passed ball to break a 1-1 tie. Brenden Overton followed with a run scoring double to left field. Alex Holderbach's RBI single capped the scoring in the inning.
The Governors (15-17, 7-9 OVC) closed the gap to two runs on Cayce Bredlau's RBI double in the top of the sixth. Chase Hamilton made it a 4-3 game with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. Alex Robles tied it with a solo homer in the eighth.
Starnes had two hits in five at bats, scored a run and drove in the winner. Howie went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI for Eastern Kentucky. Caleb Johnson (2-0) pitched the final four innings and got the win. He allowed four hits, one run and struck out five.
Hamilton finished 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI for APSU. Bredlau went 2-for-5 and drove in a run. Alex Robles had a 1-for-5 day with a run and two driven in.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 7, JACKSONVILLE STATE 6
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri baseball (18-14, 9-7) came out on top in its series opener over Jacksonville State (17-13, 6-7) Thursday evening, 7-6.
The teams combined for 19 hits, five of which were over the wall, six doubles, and a triple. Southeast was narrowly outhit in the win, 10-9.
Brian Lees tied a career-best three hits, one of which was a double. He drove in one and scored one. Tristen Gagan had two hits and three RBI, one hit being a home run while Chris Osborne also had two hits with his sixth-inning home run being the difference in the game. Chris Caffrey was responsible for SEMO's first home run of the day which was a two-run jack to put the Redhawks on the board.
Redhawk starter Clay Chandler (7-2) worked six innings in his start on the mound. He allowed six runs on 10 hits, both a season-high allowed by the righty. He fanned three and walked only one.
Southeast used five total pitchers. Joey Burris earned his first Redhawk save when he entered and used one pitch to induce a game-ending double play.
Derrick Adams pitched four and a third innings in his start, allowing six runs on seven hits. He fanned eight Redhawks and walked two. Reliever Grant Chandler (0-2) suffered the loss. He allowed Osborne's go-ahead home run in the sixth.
Southeast touched home in the bottom of the second inning thanks to a two-run home run to right off the bat of Caffrey, his second homer of the season.
The Gamecocks worked quickly to get both runs back in the top of the third. Josh Bobo doubled to lead off the inning and scored on a single through the left side by Clayton Daniel. Joe McGuire drove in the tying run with a groundout to second.
The Redhawks recaptured the lead in the bottom of the inning with a trio of runs. With two on and one out, both runners were on the move as Gagan lined a tracer in the gap in left, driving in both runs and putting SEMO back on top. Gagan immediately came in to score on a base hit by Lees, 5-2 Redhawks.
Payton Young cut into the SEMO lead with a leadoff solo jack in the fourth, 5-3.
JSU once again tied the game in the top of the fifth with a pair of runs. Daniel singled to center to make it a one-run game. After a double play, McGuire doubled to right center then scored on a base hit by Trent Simpson, knotting the game up at five all.
Gagan broke the tie and put SEMO back on top with a solo shot in the bottom of the inning, his seventh of the season, 6-5.
Bobo responsed with a two-out solo homer in the top of the sixth to once again tie the game at six runs apiece.
The fifth home run of the game was by Osborne in the sixth to put SEMO back on top, 7-6. Osborne's jack proved to be the difference maker as both bullpens silenced the opposing offenses the remainder of the game.
Nic Gaddis, Daniel, and Bobo all recorded two hits for JSU while Daniel drove in a pair at the top of the lineup.
TENNESSEE TECH 4, MURRAY STATE 2
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - For the second consecutive outing, the Tennessee Tech baseball team's pitching staff was at its best, as the Golden Eagles (27-9, 14-2) outlasted Murray State (16-17, 6-7) in a pitcher's duel Thursday evening, 4-2.
Just two days after knocking off No. 19 Vanderbilt with just two unearned runs allowed, the Tech staff once again turned in a gem on the hill. Starter Michael Wood out-dueled Racer hurler Ryan Dills for six innings before giving way to the final three to junior reliever Travis Moths.
Wood held the Racers off the scoreboard through the first four frames, working with a 1-0 advantage as soon as the Golden Eagles took to the plate. Sophomore slugger Kevin Strohschein provided the lead, ripping an RBI single to right center field that drove in fellow sophomore Alex Junior.
The visitors finally dented the plate in the fifth, tying things at 1-1 with a double to left center field off the bat of Kipp Moore. Tech quickly answered in the bottom half of frame, starting with a leadoff double by Collin Harris. Junior and then Trevor Putzig followed with back-to-back bunt singles, the latter driving in Harris for the go-ahead run.
Tech tagged two more on the board in the sixth, beginning with a leadoff bomb crushed to left center field by senior second baseman Matt Jones, his sixth home run of the year. Shortstop David Garza followed with a double down the third base line and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Harris. Junior then drove in his teammate for a 4-1 lead.
Wood completed the first six innings of the contest Thursday evening, scattering five hits and two walks while allowing just a single earned run. The senior right hander fanned eight Racer batters on the night, dominating on his way to his league-leading seventh win of the year.
Moths came on in the seventh and was fantastic over the final three innings, allowing no hits until a leadoff home run in the ninth by Jack Hranec. He rebounded quickly to record two quick outs in the frame. After a single through the right side, he mustered up five great pitches to set down Jaron Robinson looking to end the game.
The right-hander struck out four Murray State batters on his way to his second save of the season, hitting the strike zone on a whopping 30 out of 44 pitches.
Junior led the offensive attack Thursday evening, finishing 3-for-4 with an RBI and runs scored out of the leadoff spot. Putzig, Jones and junior Ryan Flick each poste multi-hit games on the day, with both Jones and Putzig recording RBI. Flick drew two walks and concluded the contest 2-for-2 at the dish.
WRIGHT STATE 14, UT MARTIN 0
DAYTON, Ohio - The Wright State Raiders tallied six runs in the opening four frames to jump out to an early advantage as they took down the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team 14-0 in game one of the non-conference series on Friday night.
The Raiders pushed across three runs in the first inning on three hits to take the early lead and tacked on an additional run in the third to make it 4-0. Four of the six UT Martin hits came in the opening three innings, but for the second straight contest, the Skyhawks failed to find the timely hit when runners were on base.
Wright State (23-8, 11-1 Horizon) broke the game open in the fifth inning, as the home squad pushed across six runs on four hits to extend their lead to double-digits. A Ryan Helgren walk followed by a Dan Kerwin single gave the Skyhawks runners at first and second with no one out in the top of the sixth, but some effective pitching from Raider reliever Mitch Gremling allowed the home squad to get out of the inning without any damage.
UT Martin (12-18, 4-11 OVC) only managed a single by Tanner Wessling in the final three innings, as they dropped the opener at Wright State 14-0.
Winston Cannon (3-2) took his first non-conference loss as a Skyhawk, while Wright State starter Jeremy Randolph (3-0) picked up the victory.
Wessling (2-4) was the lone Skyhawk with multiple hits, as Josh Hauser (1-4), Tyler Albright (1-3), Helgren (1-3) and Kerwin (1-3) each recorded hits in the contest for UT Martin.