SATURDAY'S SCORES
Illinois State 18,
@Morehead State 7
@Austin Peay 8, Indiana State 7
@Murray State 16-15, Fort Wayne 4-4
@Oral Roberts 4,
SIUE 2
@Cincinnati 4-5,
UT Martin 3-7
@Eastern Kentucky 15, Coppin State 1
Bradley 14,
@Belmont 10
@Georgia State 8,
Eastern Illinois 4
South Dakota State 7,
@Southeast Missouri 4
Jacksonville State 13, @FIU 6 (10 innings)
Tennessee Tech 10, @Troy 6
ILLINOIS STATE 18, MOREHEAD STATE 7
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Senior second baseman Braxton Morris recorded a season-best four hits Saturday, but the Morehead State baseball team saw Illinois State knock out 19 hits on route to an 18-7 win over the Eagles at Allen Field.
MSU fell to 5-5, while ISU moved to 5-3.
Morris also added two RBI as he knocked in runs in the second and fifth innings. He had a run-scoring double in the second and an RBI single in the fifth.
"I told the team earlier in the week that we would be playing a good team in Illinois State and we would have to play well to win," said head coach Mike McGuire. " So far we haven't and we've had it kind of handed to us. Braxton has been a constant for us, and he is getting good at bats almost every time."
After falling behind 1-0 in the first, Morris' double tied it in the second. However, a pair of free bases issued by starter Dalton Stambaugh in the fourth extended the Redbirds' at-bat, and Joe Butler broke open the game with a two-out grand slam to make it 5-1.
Illinois State went on to push ahead 8-2 before the Eagles made a rally in the fifth. Bases-loaded free bases drawn by sophomore catcher Brody Shoupe and freshman third baseman Bryce Hensor plated two, and Morris added another on his RBi single.
ISU surged ahead 15-5 by the eighth.
Besides Morris, senior utility man Eli Boggess collected two hits. Stambaugh was charged with seven runs to get tagged with the loss. ISU reliever Colton Johnson pitched 2.2 innings for the victory on the hill.
AUSTIN PEAY 8, INDIANA STATE 7
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - John McDonald batted in two runs as part of a four-run sixth inning that pushed Austin Peay State University's baseball team to an 8-7 victory against Indiana State, Saturday, at Raymond C. Hand Park.
Governors starter Jacques Pucheu and Sycamores starter Triston Polley battled in a pitcher's duel through the first five innings, but each had their own method of getting through five frames. However, both starters ran out of gas in the sixth and the offenses took advantage.
Pucheu battled throughout his first five innings, seeing 21 batters. He would face a bases-loaded situation in the third with one out but neatly helped his own cause by starting a double play through home plate to end the inning. Then in the fourth, he cut down a runner at home on a squeeze bunt attempt before inducing another inning-ending double play.
Polley would face just 15 batters through four innings, allowing only three base runners. The Governors would get just one runner in scoring position but Polley ended the threat with a strikeout. He would surrender a run in the fifth after allowing a two-out walk and a hit batsmen. Govs shortstop Garrett Giovannelli broke the tie with a run-scoring single but the Govs saw a potential second run downed at the plate to end the inning.
In the top of the sixth, Pucheu would surrender three straight two-out walks to allow a game-tying run before departing the game. Reliever Brett Newberg was greeted rudely when Indiana State shortstop Clay Dungan singled to drive in two more runs for a 3-1 lead.
Austin Peay (8-2) immediately responded when Polley walked two consecutive batters with one out in the sixth to see his outing come to an end. ISU reliever Jake Ridgway nearly escaped the base-loaded jam left behind by inducing a potential double play but pinch hitter John McDonald beat the play at first and two runs scored, giving the Govs a 5-3 lead.
Left fielder Nick Walker would extend the Austin Peay lead to 7-3 with a two-run home run in the seventh. Designated hitter Parker Phillips tacked on the final run with by beating out another potential double play to allow catcher Alex Sala to score.
Indiana State (5-5) would threaten in the ninth with designated hitter Romero Harris driving in two runs with a triple. The Govs lead would dwindle to a run when Harris scored on a defensive miscue. However, reliever Harley Gollert responded by inducing another ground out to end the game.
Newberg (2-0) would pick up the win after allowing one run on two hits in his 2.1 innings. Pucheu allowed three runs while surrendering seven hits and five walks in 5.2 innings.
Walker ended the day 2-for-4 with two RBI, reaching base safely in each of his final three plate appearances. Second baseman Garret Giovannelli went 3-for-3 with a RBI single, a double and two walks.
Polley (2-1) suffered his season's first loss after allowing five runs on four hits and six walks in his 5.1 innings. Center fielder Luke Fegen had a hit in each of his first four at-bats before ending the day 4-for-5 with a RBI.
MURRAY STATE 16-15, FORT WAYNE 4-4
MURRAY, Ky. - The Murray State baseball team got back on track Saturday afternoon at Reagan Field as the Racers swept a doubleheader against Fort Wayne, winning game one 16-4 and game two 15-4. Both games were shortened to just seven innings due to the 10-run rule.
The day started off right for the Racers (6-5) as they scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning in game one without recording a single hit as a four bases-loaded walks and a hit-by-pitch with the bags full pushed MSU out to the early lead.
After a Mastodon (3-6) run in the fifth, the Racers scored seven runs in the bottom half of the inning as Brandon Gutzler, Jake Slunder and Grant Wood all got RBI singles. Slunder’s base knock brought in two runs while Gutzler also scored earlier in the inning on a wild pitch to start the scoring barrage.
MSU added four more runs in the sixth to make it 16-1 on a bases-loaded walk from Caleb Hicks, a two-RBI double from Wood and a CJ Bush groundout. Fort Wayne was able to make the score a little bit more respectable with three runs in the top of the seventh.
Both teams had eight hits in game one but the Racers drew 16 walks in the win while giving out just five bases on balls. The Racers also had three doubles in the contest while all eight of Fort Wayne’s hits were singles.
Gutzler and Wood led the Racers in the first game with two hits each while four Racers scored a pair of runs in the win. Blake Clynes got the start and his first win of the season as he went five innings and allowed just one run on four hits while striking out a career-high nine batters. Tyler Horsley pitched two innings of relief in the win.
In game two, the Mastodons took an early 1-0 lead after the top of the first, but five-run bottom of the first, as well as a six-run third did much of the damage for the Racers in the win. MSU was out-hit 15-11 in the victory but recorded four extra-base hits with no errors in the field. Meanwhile, the Mastodons had just one extra-base hit and committed four errors leading to five unearned runs.
Gutzler and Hicks each recorded an RBI in the first inning while a Kyle Stevens two-run double added to the MSU lead to make it 4-1. Later in the inning Stevens would score on an error to push the lead to 5-1. Mike Farnell’s double in the second inning made it 7-1 after he drove in two.
After Fort Wayne scored in the third to make it 7-2, the Racers exploded for another big inning in the bottom half. Stevens began the scoring by coming home on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Ryan Perkins got an RBI single through the right side, which was followed by another run-scoring single by Davis Sims. The big blow for the Racers however came off the bat of Gutzler as he sent a three-run home run over the left field fence for his first homer of the season and pushed the lead to 13-2.
MSU got insurance runs in the fifth and sixth inning thanks to more sloppy play by the Mastodons. Slunder would score in the fifth on an error while Hicks would score on a wild pitch in the sixth inning. Fort Wayne added a two-run single in the top of the seventh to get to the final score of 15-4.
Gutzler, Perkins and Stevens all had two-hit and two-run games in game two for the Racers. Stevens had a pair of ribbies in the victory along with Farnell while Gutzler tallied four.
Jake Jones picked up the win in relief of starter Gray Dorsey who retired just one batter. Jones pitched 4.2 innings and allowed one run off six hits. Connor Holden also appeared in relief pitched two innings and struck-out a pair of batters.
ORAL ROBERTS 4, SIUE 2
TULSA, Okla. - Oral Roberts took game two of a three-game series with SIUE baseball, earning a 4-2 win Saturday and setting up a rubber game Sunday afternoon.
The Cougars fell to 3-5. Oral Roberts improved to 6-2.
Oral Roberts took the lead with two runs in the first against SIUE starter Ryan Byrd with four hits.
The Cougars got on the board in the second inning courtesy of a two-out home run from Brock Hammit, his second of the series. Nick Rotola tripled to lead off ORU's fourth inning. He scored on a base hit by Cal Hernandez to make it 3-1.
Peyton Cordova-Smith doubled down the right field line to lead off the sixth inning. He moved to third on a groundout and then scored on a sacrifice fly Jared McCunn to cut the lead to 3-2.
Byrd pitched into the sixth where he issued a one-out walk to Pearson. Pearson stole second and advanced to third on a line out. He scored on an RBI-hit by Hernandez. Byrd allowed four runs on eight hits and a walk. He struck out three.
Chris Robinson followed with 2.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen. He allowed just a single hit and struck out three.
The Cougars finished with six hits and left six runners on base. Cordova-Smith had three of the Cougars' six hits.
Rotola and Hernandez each had three hits for the Golden Eagles, who finished with nine total hits.
CINCINNATI 4-5, UT MARTIN 3-7
CINCINNATI, Ohio - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball squad split today’s doubleheader at Cincinnati today, dropping the first game 4-3 but made an epic comeback in the second game by posting a 7-5 victory over the Bearcats.
On the day, UT Martin (2-8) was led by Tyler Albright (three hits, two home runs and four RBIs), Ethan Whitley (four hits, one home run and two RBIs) and JoJo Allen (three hits, one home run and four RBIs).
The Skyhawk pitching staff saw Winston Cannon and Zack Denney toss four innings each in Game 1. Peyton Cain dazzled in his 4.1 innings of work in Game 2 while Austin Buzick threw three full innings of relief. Konnor Aherin showed signs of being a very clutch late inning man as he tossed 3.2 innings of two-hit baseball in the waning innings of a tight ballgame to claim the second victory of the year for UT Martin.
The Skyhawks return to action tomorrow at 11 a.m. in the series finale against the Bearcats.
Allen led the Skyhawks in the first game of the twin bill as he accounted for all three runs for UT Martin on a home run. Whitley tallied two hits while Albright got a base knock.
Cannon allowed three runs in four innings out of the gate and fanned three Bearcats in his time on the mound. Denney (0-2) was tagged with the tough loss as he allowed the deciding run but was able to keep Cincinnati at bay for the majority of his four innings of work.
UT Martin was able to get runners on in the second inning as Collin Edwards drew a four-pitch walk but was erased from the base paths as he was caught stealing. Whitley then popped a single through the left side of the infield but was tagged out at first on a pickoff.
Cincinnati would have its big inning of the game in the third frame as the Bearcats found three runs on three hits and a walk, gaining a 3-0 advantage over the Skyhawks.
UT Martin looked as if it would answer the very next inning as Jordan Stoner drew a four-pitch walk followed by Casey Harford being plunked by a pitch to put two on for the Skyhawks but to no avail.
Finding a big fifth inning, UT Martin saw Whitley lead off with a single through the right side followed by Albright’s single to put two on for Allen. On the first pitch of the at-bat, Allen cranked his three-run shot to left field to even the score 3-3.
Cincinnati would take advantage of early seventh inning hits to plate one run in the frame, putting the Bearcats ahead 4-3. Denney made quick work in the Cincinnati eighth as he retired the side in order on just eight pitches but the Skyhawks could not counter in the ninth frame.
UT Martin struck early in the second half of today’s doubleheader being led by Albright (two home runs, four RBIs) and Whitley (two hits, one home run and two RBIs). Allen (two hits, one RBI), Casey Harford (two hits, one run scored), Aslett (two hits), Stoner, Edwards and Blake Williams all got in on the hit parade as well.
Peyton Cain tossed 4.1 innings of solid baseball, allowing three earned runs while striking out four Bearcats in his time on the mound. Austin Buzick came on in relief for three innings but gave up a pair of runs in his time while Konnor Aherin (1-0) was extremely clutch as he gave up just two hits and fanned a pair of batters in his 3.2 innings of shutout baseball.
Harford tallied the Skyhawks’ first hit of the game as he doubled to left center just before Allen duplicated with a double of his own. Albright then hit an inside the park home run to give UT Martin an early 3-0 advantage. Cincinnati answered with one run in the home half of the first narrowing the Skyhawk lead to 3-1.
The Bearcats evened things up in the second frame as they were able to muster two runs on three hits, making things tied up at 3-3. Cain would make quick work of the third inning as he retired the side in order on just 10 pitches.
UT Martin looked to get hot again in the fifth inning as Ben Aslett tallied a single and was later able to advance to second on a throwing error but was unable to be pushed across the plate.
The Skyhawks added to their lead in the sixth as Allen was able to draw a five-pitch walk followed by another Albright homer, putting UT Martin up 5-3. Buzick tossed a perfect sixth as he worked out a trifecta of groundouts.
Cincinnati answered with a run in both the seventh and eighth innings as they evened things back up 5-5.
Aherin avoided major trouble as he worked around a bases loaded situation in the bottom of the ninth that assured the Skyhawks would have a chance to pull out the win.
UT Martin would remain fairly quiet until the 11th inning when Allen led off with a double. Things looked to be bleak as the next two batters struck out and flied out, respectively. Down to just one out left in the frame, Whitley stepped up to the plate and crushed a two-run shot to put the Skyhawks up 7-5. The bases would continue to see runners on them as Aslett, Williams and Stoner all hit singles to load up the bases but would be left on.
Cincinnati looked to even the score in the bottom of the 11th but Aherin made sure the Skyhawks would be victorious as he retired the side in order to put UT Martin on top.
EASTERN KENTUCKY 15, COPPIN STATE 1
RICHMOND, Ky. - For the second straight game, the Eastern Kentucky University baseball team built an early lead and then pulled away late, this time beating visiting Coppin State University, 15-1, on Saturday to clinch the series victory.
Eastern (4-6) jumped out early with three runs in the first inning, two of which came home on a single up the middle by Tyler Romanik. Cornell Nixon stretched the lead to 4-0 when he scored on a ground out in the second.
Right-hander Austin Perry (1-1) registered Eastern’s first quality start of the season. The senior allowed just one run on six hits in six innings. He walked three and struck out a season-best eight batters.
Nick Howie turned a 5-1 game into an 8-1 Colonel lead in the bottom of the sixth. With two on and no outs, the sophomore sent the ball over the wall in right center. EKU added three more runs in the sixth to cap the six-run frame and go up 11-1.
Miles Jones came off the bench in the top of the seventh and hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth, his first of the season.
Howie finished 2-for-6 with a run and three RBIs. Nixon had two hits in three at bats, walked twice and scored two runs. One day after going 4-for-5 in the series opener, Ryland Kerr had a 3-for-4 day with a run and an RBI. Daniel Harris IV also went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI.
Allen Saar finished 3-for-4 with a run driven in for the Eagles (1-6-1).
BRADLEY 14, BELMONT 10
NASHVILLE - Belmont Baseball fell to Bradley 14-10 on Saturday afternoon despite a ninth inning rally.
Senior Connor Etheridge (Springfield, Ill.) got the start on the bump Saturday afternoon. After a leadoff base hit and stolen base, Bradley found itself in scoring position, but Etheridge got his first strikeout of the game. In the bottom of the first, Belmont started off with hot bats. After a lead-off fly out, Belmont recorded three straight hits. Junior Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) recorded the first hit and run of the game with the help of a RBI by junior Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.).
The Braves tied the score in the top of the second and never looked back. Bradley struck again in the top of the third, scoring three more runs from a three-run homer.
Belmont scored twice in the bottom of the third with senior Austin Reynolds (Smyrna, Tenn.) and freshman Jordan Henshaw (New Market, Ala.) earning RBI's.
After giving up three runs in the top of the fourth, Reynolds recorded another RBI in the bottom of the fifth to keep the Bruins within striking distance, but Bradley would open things up in the top of the sixth. The Braves scored five runs with the help of a couple base hits and walks to extend the lead to 12-4.
BU was able to keep the Braves at bay for two innings before giving up two more runs in the top of the ninth. The Bruins headed into the bottom of the ninth with work to do.
The Bruins never gave up, putting together a string of hits to score six runs in the bottom of the ninth. Belmont took advantage of two Bradley errors, including one that would end the game to keep battling. Bradley would ultimately hang on for the 14-10 victory.
GEORGIA STATE 8, EASTERN ILLINOIS 4
ATLANTA - The Eastern Illinois baseball team found themselves in a hole midway through the game, falling to Georgia State in the second game of the series 8-4.
Eastern Illinois dropped to 5-4 on the season, while Georgia State advances to 6-3.
Similar to yesterdays start Eastern Illinois got on the board first scoring in the second inning. Matt Albert got the inning started with a one-out double to left. Ryan Knernschield was able to drive Albert home on a single to center.
Georgia State immediately answered back in the bottom of the second with two runs to give them the lead. The bottom of the second kicked off with an Andrew Keene walk. Jack Thompson advanced Keene to second with a single to right. Georgia State gained runners on the corners when Luke Leonard reached on a fielder's choice. Will Kilgore got GSU on the board with a double down the left field line.
Georgia State added five more runs in the bottom of the fifth to lead the Panthers 7-1. Justin Jones drove in three of the GSU with a two-out double to left. Nick Gatewood was able to add two more runs for Georgia State belting a two run homer to right.
Hunter Morris gave EIU life in the top of the fifth hitting a solo home run to left to cut the score to 7-2.
Mike Higgins homered in the bottom of the sixth to extend the Georgia State lead to 8-2.
Eastern Illinois fought back in the bottom of the ninth inning. Morris added another RBI to his total for the day, driving in Joseph Duncan on a single up the middle. Dougie Parks kept the EIU comeback alive also singling up the middle scoring Jimmy Govern. However, GSU was able to get out of a jam to secure the second game of the series 8-4.
Carson Haws took the loss for EIU as he allowed seven runs in four innings pitched.
Morris finished the day going 3-for-5 with, two RBIs, homerun, and a run. Parks finished 2-for-5 with a double and RBI. Andrew Curren hit 2-for-4 on the day.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 7, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 4
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri (3-8) had 12 hits and took an early lead, but fell victim to a late rally as South Dakota State (1-8) won, 7-4, Saturday in front of a crowd of 980 at Capaha Field.
SEMO took a 2-0 lead after scoring once on back-to-back one-out doubles by Trevor Ezell and Tristen Gagan in the bottom of the first inning and again on a two-out infield single by Peyton Faulkner in the second.
The Jackrabbits answered in the top of the third to tie the game at 2-2. Anthony Schneider doubled to left center to score Gus Steiger who was hit by a pitch. Josh Kutzke later knocked in Schneider on a two-out single to left.
Kolton Michalski walked with one out in the top of the sixth inning and scored the go-ahead run on an ensuing home run by Steiger, putting SDSU up 4-2.
A clutch two-out single by Ezell closed SDSU's lead to 4-3 in the bottom of the seventh. Alex Nielsen touched home on the play after he previously got on base with a single to right.
SDSU pulled away from SEMO with three runs in the top of the ninth.
Nick Smith's pinch-hit triple down the right field line scored both Schneider and Skyler Wenninger. Then, Philip Jacobson hit a two-out double to plate Smith as the Jackrabbits widened their lead to 7-3.
SEMO had runners on second and third with one out in the eighth inning, but came up empty when Nielsen grounded into a double play.
The Redhawks managed to get one final run in the ninth on Ezell's groundout. However, that was it as Gagan struck out and Justin Dirden flied out to right to end the game.
Tyler Olmstead (1-0) picked up his first win of the season. Olmstead gave up three runs on nine hits, struck out four and walked one in 6.1 innings.
Alex Marro earned the save. Marro struck out one, allowed a run and induced an inning-ending double play in the eighth.
Cody Creed (0-1) took the loss for SEMO. Creed struck out two and walked two in three innings of relief. He scattered three hits and allowed two runs.
The first four hitters in SEMO's lineup consisting of Faulkner, Chase Urhahn, Ezell and Gagan combined for eight of the Redhawks 12 hits. Each had two apiece. Ezell's hitting streak now stands at 11 games.
SDSU added 10 hits with Newt Johnson and Kutzke contributing two each.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 13, FIU 6 (10)
MIAMI, Fla. - Junior Nic Gaddis was a perfect 6-for-6 and collected six RBI in Jacksonville State's 13-6 win in 10 innings over Florida International on Saturday evening at FIU Stadium.
The win clinches the series over the Panthers for the second consecutive season in a row after the Gamecock (8-2) won 2-of-3 to open the year. Jax State will seek to complete its second weekend sweep of the season on Sunday. First pitch is set for 11 a.m. CST.
Gaddis, the Gamecocks' catcher, was one hit shy of matching the program's Division I record for hits with a game. Former Jax State outfielder Gavin Golsan produced seven hits in a game against Belmont during the 2016 season. Gaddis is the first Gamecock since senior Clayton Daniel accumulated six hits in a single game. Last season, Daniel posted six hits against Southeast Missouri on April 15.
Gaddis is just the third player this season in NCAA Division I Baseball to have six or more RBI in a game. New Mexico State's Noah Haupt drove in 10 runs last weekend against Mississippi Valley State, while Jake Brodt of Santa Clara and Brian Sharp pushed nine runs across the plate on Feb.17 and Feb. 23 respectively. He also joins a list of three other Division I players this season to have six hits in a single game. Greg Cullen of Niagra, NMSU's Haupt and Brandon Michie of Mercer have all finished with six hits in a game this season.
JSU needed a rally in the visitors half of the ninth to extend the game in to extra innings for the second straight night. On Friday night, JSU broke open a 6-6 deadlock in the 12th inning with a six-run explosion.
Trailing 6-5 entering the final plate appearance, Gaddis connected on his fifth hit of the night with a single, driving in senior Taylor Hawthorne, who reached on a one-out walk. Down to their last out, sophomore Andrew Naismith singled to left to give Gaddis the scoring opportunity.
After redshirt sophomore Tyler Wilburn (2-0) retired the Panthers in order in the ninth, JSU put together three hits and took advantage of an FIU error in the seven-run 10th. Freshman Isaac Alexander, opened the frame with a single and moved to second after sophomore Chase Robinson reached via a walk. Freshman Cole Frederick was put in a sacrifice bunt situation and put the bunt down right in front of the FIU catcher, who threw wildly to first, scoring both runners and putting Frederick on third. Senior Nolan Greckel collected an RBI single for the ninth run of the game. After Hawthorne was plunked and senior Trent Simpson and Naismith with back-to-back walks, Gaddis cleared the bases with a double for the final fun tally.
Wilburn settled in after entering the contest all knotted a 5-5 and was touched for a leadoff home run by FIU. The Helena, Alabama left-hander would retire the next nine Panthers before a leadoff single by FIU to start the 10th. He worked around the lead off base hit to get a strike out and two fly balls. Wilburn matched his career high in strike outs with six.
Junior Derrick Adams was solid in his third start of the season with five innings of work and a pair of strike outs. Redshirt freshman Sean Rape worked an inning. The JSU pitching staff did not allow a walk to the Panthers.
Jax State, who finished with 13 total hits off of six different FIU pitchers, opened the scoring with the first RBI from Gaddis. FIU would take a 2-1 lead in the home half before JSU would take a 5-2 lead with a pair of runs in the fourth and single runs in the fifth and sixth. Hawthorne highlighted the JSU fourth with a solo blast to right field. The lead would dissolve in the sixth with FIU scoring three in the sixth.
Simpson and Naismith joined Gaddis with multiple hits with two each.
TENNESSEE TECH 10, TROY 6
TROY, Ala. - Another strong offensive showing, as well as a pair of impressive relief appearances, helped the Tennessee Tech baseball team even its weekend series at Troy at 1-1 Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles (6-3) defeated the Trojans (6-5) at Riddle-Pace Field, 10-6.
Much like game one of the three-game series, Tech locked onto the scoreboard first, gathering an RBI single from one of the day's offensive heroes, John Ham. The junior second baseman became the first Golden Eagle since 2014 (Brandon Thomasson) to hit for the cycle, finishing 4-for-4 in the contest.
In the top of the third, Tech plate two more runs behind a trio of hits. Senior slugger Chase Chambershammered his fourth home run of the year to center field, followed by a triple down the right-field line by Ham. Senior shortstop David Garza followed with an infield single to his counterpart in the field, driving in Ham for a 3-0 Tech lead.
Troy answered with a large inning in the third, scoring five runs behind a patient approach. Tech issued to two bases-loaded walks and hit a batter with the bases juiced as part of the five-run frame for the home team.
Tech took its time tying the contest, starting its comeback bid in the fifth. Earning his third trip to the plate in the contest, Ham crushed a solo bomb to right field to chip away at the deficit, making it a 5-4 Troy lead. In the sixth, junior Kevin Strohschein took his turn chipping in to the scoring, smashing along fly ball to center field for a sacrifice fly to even the score at 5-5.
Helping the Golden Eagles in its rally was the sophomore pitcher Devin Lancaster. After walking in a run and hitting a batter in the third inning, the right-hander really settled down on the mound, tossing a total of four scoreless frames while scattering two hits. Lancaster punched out five Troy batters, including the side in the fourth, earning his first victory of the season.
With the score knotted at five in the top of the seventh, the Golden Eagle offense went back to work. Ham and senior Collin Harris each got plunked by pitches with an out sandwiched between. Head coach Matt Bragga made the decision to pinch hit in the designated hitter spot, calling on freshman slugger Jason Hinchman.
The choice paid huge dividends, as the rookie blasted a 1-1 offering over the fence in right field for his first career home run and an 8-5 Golden Eagle lead. In the bottom half, junior closer Ethan Roberts relieved Lancaster after the sophomore recorded two outs. Roberts proceeded to gather a fly ball and take Tech to the eighth, where Ham turned in a double to right center field to complete the cycle.
Troy managed to record the first run off Roberts all season in the eighth, posting an RBI double after the Sparta native began the inning with a double-play ball to second base. The Tech closer recovered quickly, inducing an inning-ending grounder to shortstop.
Tech gathered a couple of huge insurance runs in the ninth, with Chambers ripping a bases-loaded, two run single through the left side to make it a 10-6 Golden Eagle lead. Roberts closed things from there, striking out the first two batters of the ninth. After surrendering a pair of singles, the closer induced a game-ending fly ball to center field to earn his second save of the season.
Chambers led the team with three RBI in the contest, finishing 3-for-5 at the plate. Ham scored three runs and drove in two while going 4-for-4 and hitting for the cycle. He reached base all six times he took to the plate. Senior Trevor Putzig tied the program's single game record for walks, drawing four of them on the day.