SATURDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Illinois 9, @Morehead State 8
Murray State 6, @Belmont 4
Jacksonville State 5, @Eastern Kentucky 4
@UT Martin 10-5, Austin Peay 8-8
Tennessee Tech 9-9, @Southeast Missouri 8-11
SIUE 6-6, @Pittsburgh 4-7
EASTERN ILLINOIS 9, MOREHEAD STATE 8
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Eastern Illinois maintained a lead against Morehead State for most of the game, but the Eagles rallied back to tie the contest at six in the bottom of the eighth. The Panthers responded for the second game in a row with a big ninth-inning rally and held off a Morehead State comeback in the bottom-half of the frame as Eastern Illinois earned a 9-8 win on Saturday.
The Panthers, winners of six-straight conference games, improved their record to 9-11 in the OVC and 16-28 overall. Morehead State dropped to 27-16 overall and 12-7 in the conference.
With the win, Eastern Illinois takes a 2-0 advantage in the series over Morehead State. Eastern Illinois snapped Morehead State's streak of 17-straight home series wins that dated back to the early part of the 2015 season. The Panthers will now go for the series-sweep against the Eagles on Sunday with first pitch at 12 p.m. (CST).
The game remained scoreless through the first two frames, but the Eastern Illinois offense broke through in the top of the third inning. After back-to-back singles by Frankie Perrone and Hunter Beetley started the inning, Joseph Duncan moved the pair to second and third with just one out. Logan Beaman drove in both Perrone and Beetley with a two-run single and gave the Panthers a 2-0 lead.
The score held firm until the fifth and sixth innings when the Panthers struck again. Duncan singled with two outs in the fifth and came around to score on a two-run home run by Jimmy Govern. The Panthers continued to apply the pressure in the sixth as the first three Eastern Illinois batters reached base. Matt Albert got hit to start the inning, while Josh Turnock and Andrew Curran followed with a single each. Perrone plated Albert on an RBI sacrifice fly. Beetley drove in Turnock with an RBI single to left center and gave the Panthers a 6-0 advantage.
After shutting out the Morehead State through the first five innings, the Eagles finally got to EIU starter Michael McCormick in the sixth. Niko Hulsizer and Will Schneider recorded back-to-back hits to put runners on second and third with one out in the inning. Eli Boggess drove in the first run of the game for the Eagles with an RBI sacrifice fly.
The Eagles added a two more runs in the bottom of the seventh and eventually tied the score at 6-6 on a three-run triple by Reid Leonard in the bottom of the eighth against the EIU bullpen.
Govern got the Panthers started right away in the top of the ninth with a lead-off double, just before a walk to Beaman to put runners on first and second. Dougie Parks came through in the clutch for the Panthers with a three-run home run to right-center field and gave EIU a 9-6 lead.
Things got interesting in the bottom-half of the inning as the Eagles would not go away quietly. Schneider followed a lead-off walk by Hulsizer to put runners on second and third with no outs. Braxton Morris brought home Hulsizer with an RBI sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 9-7. Morehead State took advantage of a walk and a pair of EIU errors to pull within one at 9-8. That would be as close as the Eagles would get however as Michael Starcevich got the final Morehead State batter to fly out and earned his fourth win of the season.
Beaman finished the game a perfect 3-for-3 at the dish to lead Eastern Illinois. Four Panthers – Govern, Curran, Perrone and Beetley – all supplied two hits each in the win.
As a team, the Panthers turned five double plays in the game, which marked the first time an EIU defense turned five double plays in a game since the 2008 season against UT Martin.
MURRAY STATE 6, BELMONT 4
NASHVILLE - A one-out, two-RBI single to center field from Ryan Perkins in the top of the 12th broke a 4-4 tie and Chad Gendron was able to close the door in the bottom half of the inning as Murray State escaped with a 6-4 victory over Belmont Saturday afternoon in Nashville.
The win was the Racers’ (22-21, 10-10 OVC) season-high fifth straight and improves MSU’s record to 3-1 this season in extra innings. Gendron’s outing lasted a career-high five innings as he struck-out four batters and allowed just three hits on the way to his second win on the year.
MSU was able to jump on Belmont (20-21, 13-10 OVC) early with a pair of runs in the top of the first. Tyler Lawrence opened the scoring with an RBI single to left, scoring Aaron Bence. The next batter, Davis Sims, was able to reach on a fielder’s choice that allowed Adam Bauer to score from third.
The Racers extended their lead with a run in both the third and fourth inning. Brandon Gutzler’s 11th home run of the season in the third put MSU up 3-0 and in the fourth, a Caleb Hicks RBI single to left pushed it to 4-0.
Belmont would fight its way back however, scoring two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to make it 4-4. After the Bruins tied things in the bottom half of the sixth, the two teams went scoreless for five consecutive innings, with both teams squandering opportunities to score before Perkins’ breakthrough in the 12th.
Both Bauer and Gutzler led the Racers with three-hit days in the contest and were the only two with multiple hits in the win. Lawrence went 1-for-4 at the dish and had a pair of walks. Austin Dubsky go the start on the mound and had a no decision as he pitched 4.1 innings and allowed two runs on three hits while striking out five batters. Chance Carner also made a relief appearance, going 2.2 innings and allowing two runs.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 5, EASTERN KENTUCKY 4
RICHMOND, Ky. - For the second straight game, sophomore Nic Gaddis delivered the big hit for Jacksonville State as his ninth inning pinch-hit single scored two runs in JSU's 5-4 come-from-behind win over Eastern Kentucky to clinch the series on Saturday at Turkey Hughes Field.
It took a while to play the last inning as the contest was delayed right before the start of the ninth due to lightning in the area. The one hour, 35 minute delay did not deter the Gamecocks as they entered their final plate appearance down 4-3 after the Colonels broke up a 3-3 gridlock with a solo home run to start the home half of the eighth by Alex Holderbach.
JSU started the ninth with back-to-back singles by Andrew Naismith and Josh Bobo. After Chase Robinson moved both runners in scoring position, Gaddis delivered the game-winning hit. On Friday night, it was his two-run home run that lifted the Gamecocks to the win in the opener.
The Gamecocks moved back to .500 in the Ohio Valley Conference with the win and improved to 22-19 overall. The loss drops the Colonels to 21-22 on the season and 7-13 in the league. JSU will be looking for its first OVC weekend series sweep of the season on Sunday. First pitch is set for 12 p.m. CST.
JSU played catch up throughout the day until taking the lead in the ninth. The Colonels pushed across two runs in the first against Jax State starter Colton Pate. After allowing the two runs in the opening frame, Pate settled in for the next five innings before exiting in the seventh. The Lincoln, Alabama right hander allowed three EKU runs, but only one of the trio of runs was earned. He fanned nine Colonels and issued two free passes.
Jax State manufactured a two-run fourth, which was started by junior Clayton Daniel's leadoff double. Junior Trent Simpson had the second double of the frame, scoring Daniel. Naismith collected a two-out RBI with a single through the right side. Simpson would add his second RBI of the day in the eighth with a ground ball out to the right side of diamond. Daniel led the Gamecocks at the dish with a three hits, while Simpson, Nolan Greckel and Naismith had multiple hits in the contest.
Senior Nate Sylvester finished off the eighth inning after the leadoff home run, tallied his first win of the season, while redshirt junior Justin Hoyt added his second save of the series and fifth of the season. Hoyt worked around a leadoff single by EKU to end the contest with two strikeouts.
UT MARTIN 10-5, AUSTIN PEAY 8-8
MARTIN, Tenn. - In one of the most exciting days of the 2017 season, the University of Tennessee at Martin scored six runs in the bottom of the ninth to earn a 10-8 victory on their way to splitting a doubleheader with Ohio Valley Conference foe Austin Peay.
Both teams were able to take advantage of a strong gusts blowing out of Skyhawk Field, as the Skyhawks and Governors both blasted five home runs each in the twinbill. Trailing 8-4 entering the ninth inning in game one, a game-tying grand slam from senior Dan Kerwin and a walk-off bomb off the bat of Creighton Eldridge propelled the Skyhawks to conference win number eight on the season.
Austin Peay (19-21, 10-12) opened the scoring in game one with an unearned run in the first inning to take the early 1-0 advantage. An Alex Robles single in the third brought home two more runs for the Governors in the third as UT Martin (19-22, 8-12 OVC) found themselves in an early 3-0 hole.
The first big fly of the day came in the bottom half of the inning came in the Skyhawks’ half of the third as Kerwin launched a two-run shot to deep right field to trim the Austin Peay advantage to 3-2. The blast was the Bradenton, Fla. native’s fourth of the season.
The Governors tacked on a run in the fifth on a balk from UT Martin starting pitcher Dalton Westfall, but it was the Skyhawks who picked up their pitched with a pair of equalizing runs in the bottom half of the inning. Connor Aube singled into left and brought home third baseman Ben Aslett on a miscue from the Governor left fielder Malcom Tipler. Aube later scored as Tyler Albright reached on an error, but picked up his team-leading 28th RBI in the process to knot the game at 4-4.
Austin Peay seized control of the game in the eighth as they pushed across four runs on three home runs in the inning to take what looked like a commanding 8-4 lead late.
That set the stage for a wild bottom of the ninth inning. Aslett and Aube opened the inning with back-to-back base knocks. Albright then reached on a walk setting the stage for the Skyhawk three-hole hitter Kerwin. The designated hitter did not disappoint as he roped a deep ball out over the left-center wall for an equalizing grand slam to tie the game 8-8.
Tanner Wessling extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a single in the next at-bat before Eldridge stepped up to the plate with a chance to win it. On the very first pitch from Governor closer Levi Primasing, the Mansfield, Texas sent the Skyhawks into a frenzy with his walk-off shot over the left field wall, as UT Martin took game one 10-8.
Westfall started on the mound for UT Martin and gave the home team another great outing, allowing just three earned runs, including only allowing three total hits in 6.0 innings. Alex Evans (6-4) relieved Westfall to start the seventh inning and picked up the victory for the Skyhawks. Primasing (1-1) took the loss after surrendering both homers in the ninth.
At the plate, Kerwin (3-5, two home runs, six RBI’s), Aube (3-5, two runs) and Wessling (2-5) all notched multiple hits in the win.
Riding the momentum from the thrilling victory in the first game of the back-to-back, UT Martin (19-23, 8-13 OVC) opened the scoring in game two with a two-RBI double from senior Ryan Helgren. It was the Columbia, Tenn. native’s 26th and 27th RBI on the season and it put the home squad ahead early 2-0.
Austin Peay (20-21, 11-12) picked up a run in the fourth on an RBI-sacrifice fly from Governor right fielder Chase Hamilton to trim the UT Martin lead to 2-1.
Eldridge picked up right where he left off in the bottom half of the inning with a leadoff bomb out to left to extend the Skyhawk lead to 3-1. It was the center fielder’s third homer of the series and team-leading eighth of the season.
The Governors battled back to tie the game in the top of the fifth on a two-run homer by starting pitcher Robles to square things 3-3. It was Austin Peay who took their first lead off the ballgame in the next inning as the visitors pushed across two more runs to gain the 5-3 advantage.
Senior shortstop Josh Hauser knocked a single through the left side in the bottom of the sixth to score Eldridge from second base and bring the Skyhawks within one, 5-4. It was the Belvidere, Ill. native’s 14th run batted in on the year.
The visiting squad earned some separation from UT Marin in the seventh with three runs to make the spread 8-4 in favor of Austin Peay. Hamilton launched a three-run blast off of Skyhawk reliever Kyle Laberge for the big hit in the inning and for the second time today put UT Martin in a four-run deficit late in the game.
Freshman Aube launched his first career home run in the bottom half of the inning in hopes of sparking a Skyhawk rally late, but his solo blast was all the scoring as UT Martin dropped the second game of the doubleheader 8-5.
Peyton Cain (1-4) picked up the loss for the Skyhawks as he tossed a solid six innings, allowing five earned runs and struck out three Governors. Robles (4-7) showed his versatility both picking up the win for Austin Peay, as well as hitting for the cycle at the plate.
Eldridge (3-4, two runs), Aube (2-5, one home run) and Helgren (2-4, two RBI’s) all recorded multiple hits in the losing effort.
TENNESSEE TECH 9-9, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 8-11
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri (21-20, 11-12) and Tennessee Tech (32-18, 18-2) squared off in a doubleheader Saturday at Capaha Field. TTU was victorious in game one of the day, 9-8, in a 10-inning affair.
In game one the Redhawk offense outhit the Golden Eagles in the game, 14-13. Chris Osborne and Danny Wright each scattered a trio of hits. Osborne drove in three runs and fell a double shy of hitting for the cycle. Dan Holst also drove in three runs in his two-hit game.
Redhawk starter Justin Murphy pitched seven and two-thirds innings. He gave up seven runs on eight hits. He recorded a no decision after Southeast tied the game in the bottom of the eighth inning.
In his first appearance in two weeks following injury, Carlos Vega (1-2) pitched the 10th inning for Southeast, recording the loss after allowing the go-ahead run.
In his start for TTU, Jake Usher worked four and a third innings, giving up three runs on seven hits. He struck out four but also walked four in his outing.
Travis Moths (2-0) earned the win as the pitcher of record in the 10th inning. He pitched the three final innings, allowing four runs on five hits.
The Redhawks broke the scoreless tie with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning. After walks to Clayton Evans and Kyle Bottger, a wild pitch by Usher moved both into scoring position. Dan Holst poked a two-out base knock through the right side to plate both runners and put SEMO up 2-0. Holst was tagged out at the plate on a single through four hole by Chris Osborne to end the inning.
With two on, Anthony Carrera split the right center gap to tie the game up at two runs each in the top of the third.
Ryan Flick put the Golden Eagles on top with a solo home run to left in the fourth, 3-2.
Osborne led off the bottom of the fifth with a home run to left center, knotting the game up at 3-3.
Connor Basler was hit in the leg by a pitch then was bunted to second by Bottger in the bottom of the sixth. Holst popped a ball up down the left field line to appear to end the inning; however, the left fielder couldn't make the catch, allowing Basler to score and putting SEMO back on top, 4-3.
Much like the sixth inning of game one of the series, TTU put up a five spot in the eighth in game two. The inning was highlighted by a three-run home run by Chase Chambers to go up 8-4.
After a quick two out in the bottom of the eighth, the Redhawks revved up the offense to retie the contest. Bottger reached on an infield single then went first to third on a base hit by Holst. Both runs scored on a triple that plugged the right center gap by Osborne. Brian Lees followed with a ground ball to the third baseman whose throw to first was high, allowing Osborne to score and Lees to take second on the play. Tristen Gagan singled over the first baseman and plated Lees to tie the game at eight all.
The game was forced into extra innings as neither team plated a run in the ninth inning.
Vega entered to pitch and surrendered the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th on a Matt Jones RBI single.
The Redhawks put two on with no out in the bottom of the inning but were held scoreless, falling in game two of the series, 9-8.
Four Golden Eagles each recorded a pair of hits while Chambers led the way with three RBI and Flick and Carrera each drove in two.
After suspending its series finale with Tennessee Tech (32-14, 18-3) on Saturday, Southeast Missouri baseball (22-20, 12-12) resumed the contest Sunday afternoon and held its lead to defeat the Golden Eagles, 11-9.
The Redhawks outhit TTU 17-14 in the game. Chris Osborne, Tristen Gagan, and Chris Caffrey all had three hits in the game. Caffrey drove in three runs while Gagan had two RBI.
Neither team's starter made it past the first inning. Ryan Losman pitched the first inning but allowed three runs on three hits. He was relieved by Nate Green to begin the second. Green pitched four innings on Saturday but did not pitch into Sunday.
Daniel Bergtholdt (1-0) entered to pitch in the top of the sixth to resume the game. He became the pitcher of record when SEMO took the lead in the bottom of the inning. He worked one and two-thirds innings, allowing two runs on three hits.
Joey Burris recorded his second save of the season when he came in and retired the final two batters of the game in the ninth inning.
TTU starter Ty King exited with two out in the first after allowing two runs on three hits. Devin Lancaster pitched three and a third innings to relieve King but did not come out to resume the game Sunday. Nick Osborne (2-2) took the mound Sunday and surrendered four runs to Southeast to record the loss.
Tennessee Tech jumped out to a quick lead in the first inning with a two-run home run by Kevin Strohschein and a solo home run by Chase Chambers, 3-0 TTU.
Dan Holst led off the bottom of the inning with a leadoff home run to put SEMO on the board. Osborne followed with a double then scored on a Caffrey double to pull within one run, 3-2 in the first.
Trevor Putzig homered down the left field line in the top of the third to widen the lead to 4-2.
The Redhawks plated a trio of runs in the bottom of the third on six-consecutive hits in the frame. Danny Wright tied the game with a two-out single to right then Josh Haggerty plated the go-ahead run with a single up the middle, scoring Caffrey, 5-4 Redhawks.
Gagan led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a double laced to left center. The game was then sent into a lightning delay at approximately 5:50 p.m. Saturday evening and was eventually suspended.
The finale was resumed Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m.
Chambers led off the top of the sixth with solo shot to tie the game at five all.
Southeast retook the lead in the bottom of the inning with a four spot. Kyle Bottger and Holst led off the frame with a pair of free bases then moved into scoring position on a groundout by Osborne. Bottger scored to break the tie on a Brian Lees infield single. Gagan singled off N. Osborne and up the middle to plate Holst. Chase Burkett entered and uncorked a wild pitch to move both runners into scoring position. Caffrey then shot a double just fair down the left field line to plate both runs and make it 9-5 in the Redhawks' favor.
Putzig scored on a wild pitch in the top of the seventh to cut into the lead, 9-6.
Osborne used an RBI single through the six hole to plate Basler and get the run back in the bottom of the inning, 10-6.
A squeeze bunt by Basler in the bottom of the eighth scored Wright to tack on an insurance run for the Redhawks, 11-6.
The Golden Eagles weren't going to go quietly in the ninth. Alex Junior led off with a single then scored from first on a double to left by Putzig. Ryan Flick then hit a two-run home run to right center to pull within two, 11-9. Burris then entered to fan Chambers and get Chris Brown to ground out to second to close the game.
Putzig finished the game 5-for-5 with two RBI, two doubles, and a home run for TTU while scoring four times.
SIUE 6-6, PITTSBURGH 4-7
PITTSBURGH - SIUE split a doubleheader at Pittsburgh Saturday winning the opener 6-4 before dropping the nightcap 7-6 at Charles L. Cost Field.
SIUE moved to 18-23. Pitt is 18-21. The games, which opened a three-game series, began three-hours late because of thunderstorms.
The game one win snapped a nine-game losing streak for SIUE.
SIUE got home runs from Brock Weimer and Dustin Woodcock on its way to a game one win
Weimer hit a solo shot in the first to give SIUE a 1-0 lead. Woodcock added a two-run shot in the sixth inning to put the Cougars ahead 5-4.
Nelson Martz (5-4) tossed five innings, allowing four runs on seven hits. He struck out four to earn the win.
Mike Miller, Michael Shereyk and Mason McReaken combined for four scoreless innings of relief. Shereyk faced one hitter, with two on and one out in the seventh inning. He struck out Nick Banman before turning the ball over to McReaken. McReaken pitched the final 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit to earn his team-leading sixth save of the year.
The Cougars outhit the Panthers 12-8 in the game.
In game two, the Cougars took a 2-0 lead in the second thanks to freshman Aaron Goeck's first career home run.
Pitt trimmed the lead to 2-1 with a run in the third inning.
The Cougars scored four times in the sixth to extend the lead to 6-1. Alec Skender capped the inning with a two-run double. Eric Giltz and Mario Tursi also picked up RBIs in the inning.
Skender finished the game 3 for 5.
The Panthers scored another in the bottom of the sixth before scoring five times in the seventh to take the lead for good at 7-6.
Pitt centerfielder Frank Maldonado gave the Panthers the lead with a two-out, two-run homer to left.