TUESDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Kentucky 7, @Western Kentucky 5
@Belmont 8, Lipscomb 7
Eastern Illinois 6, @Mississippi Valley State 0
@Central Arkansas 7,
Southeast Missouri 3
Middle Tennessee 9,
@Austin Peay 0
UT Martin 11, @Union 5
@Tennessee Tech 8, West Virginia 0
Jackson State 4,
@Morehead State 0
EASTERN KENTUCKY 7, WESTERN KENTUCKY 5
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - In the baseball version of the Battle of the Bluegrass, Eastern Kentucky University beat Western Kentucky University, 7-5, on Tuesday at Nick Denes Field in Bowling Green.
The Colonels (6-11) grabbed a 1-0 lead on an RBI ground out from Cornell Nixon in the third and then broke a 1-1 tie with five runs in the top of the fourth. All five runs were scored with two outs in the inning. Daniel Harris IV drew a bases load walk to score Alex Holderbach. Daniel McFarland followed with a two-run single to left center. Nixon capped the inning with a double down the left field line that scored two more runs and made it a 6-1 game.
The Hilltoppers (9-8) cut into the deficit with two runs in the bottom of the fourth to get within three, 6-3.
Chris Botsoe put Eastern in front 7-3 with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. It was his first home run of the season and team-best 15th RBI.
McFarland, batting in the nine-hole, finished 3-for-4 with a run and two RBIs. Nixon was 1-for-4 with three RBIs. Harris scored twice and drove in a run.
Will Brian (2-1) earned the win after tossing three innings, allowing one run on three hits and walking two batters. After giving up two runs in his first inning of relief, Darren Williams kept WKU off the board in the fifth and sixth innings. He allowed one earned run on four hits, walked one and struck out two over three innings.
Aaron Ochsenbein retired the side in order in the ninth, including two strike outs, to pick up his first save of the season.
Jacob Rhinesmith, Western’s top hitter and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) National Hitter of the Week, went 0-for-4 with a sacrifice fly. He entered the game with a .412 batting average, seven home runs and 18 RBIs.
Colin Butkiewicz had a 3-for-4 day with a run and two RBIs for Western Kentucky.
BELMONT 8, LIPSCOMB 7
NASHVILLE - Belmont Baseball improved to 7-9 with an exciting win over Lipscomb (8-9) on Tuesday afternoon at E.S. Rose Park after a high-drama ninth inning.
Belmont's bats were on fire early in the contest. Senior Cully Day (Mahomet, Ill.) got things going with a lead-off triple to center field to start an early threat for the Bruins. Senior Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.) grounded out to first base, but his ground ball drove in Day for the early lead. Junior Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.), and senior Ben Kocher (Zionsville, Ind.) continued the threat by blasting a pair of singles. Senior Austin Reynolds (Smyrna, Tenn.) hit the third consecutive base hit for the Bruins driving in Hadden. Kocher would later take advantage of a while pitch and Reynolds would be driven in by a Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) triple to take an early 4-0 lead after the first.
Day would continue to build on his impressive night, scoring BU's fifth run of the night from a solo home run in the top of the second. The long ball marks his fourth of the season.
After two scoreless innings, the Bisons would wake up in the top of the third. After a walk and a couple base hits, Lipscomb scored two runs in the third inning to cut the lead.
Belmont continued to make things happen in the bottom of the third. After the third batter, junior Zach Ehrhart (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.), singled to left field, BU took advantage of consecutive Bisons errors to tally two more runs in the bottom of the third.
Belmont went cold after the fourth inning, struggling to get anything going. The Bruins wouldn't record any more hits until the bottom of the ninth. Lipscomb took advantage of the momentum change to chip away at the lead, scoring two runs in the top of the sixth to cut the lead 7-4.
With a narrow, three run lead, freshman Logan Bowen (Bowling Green, Ky.) came in to throw for the Bruins trying to secure his fifth save of the season. After giving up a lead-off hit, Belmont gave up a walk and another base hit that scored two runs cutting the lead to one. With no outs and one on base, Lipscomb took advantage of a sac fly to notch things up. BU then called on freshman Chandler Schultz (Nashville, Tenn.) to try and get them out of a jam. With no outs and a runner on first, Schultz coaxed two fly-outs to get out of the inning.
Reynolds stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth looking to get things going for the Bruins who hadn't recorded a hit since the fourth inning. Reynolds stepped up and blasted one down the right field line just in fair territory to put himself in scoring position. With a runner on second and one out, Holland was able to put the ball in play. Lipscomb made a smart defensive play to third for the force out of Reynolds. With Holland on first and one out, Ehrhart grounded out to first but advanced Holland to scoring position. With two outs and a potential walk-off win looming, freshman Jackson Campbell (Russellville, Ky.) was able to put together a nice at-bat and rocket a walk-of double to left field that send Holland home for the Victory.
Belmont would ultimately defeat Lipscomb 8-7 for their fourth consecutive win. Belmont out-hit the Bisons 13-12 and commited no errors.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 6, MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE 0
ITTA BENA, Miss. - The Eastern Illinois baseball team defeated Mississippi Valley in the opening game of their two game series on Tuesday, 6-0. EIU's shutout marked their first shutout recorded on the season.
With the win Eastern Illinois moves to 6-8, while Mississippi Valley drops to 1-14 on the season.
Tyler Jones picked up second win of the season tossing 6.0 shutout innings, striking out five batters and allowing three hits. Jones advances to 2-0 on the season for the Panthers.
Hunter Morris got EIU on the board in the fourth inning singling to center to score Dougie Parks. Morris would claim another RBI in the top of the fifth when he reached on an error by Jancarlos Aponte.
The Panthers would score in their third straight inning in the top of the sixth adding four runs to their lead. Tyler Tesmond kicked off the inning with a leadoff single to short. Jimmy Govern would come into the game to pinch hit for Hunter Beetley. Govern hit a double to left, advancing Tesmond to third. Josh Turnock followed up scoring Tesmond on a single to center. Andrew Curran kept the Rally alive with a one run double to center. Frankie Perrone would come into the game to pinch hit for Logan Beaman. Perrone would give the Panthers a 6-0 lead on a sacrifice fly to right field.
Parks finished the day going for 2-for-5 with a double, RBI, and run. Govern went 2-for-2 with a double, walk, and a run. Tesmond finished 1-for-3 with two walks, two stolen bases, and a run.
CENTRAL ARKANSAS 7, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 3
CONWAY, Ark. - Southeast Missouri (5-12) dropped a 7-3 decision to Southland Conference foe Central Arkansas (8-8) Tuesday night at Bear Stadium.
SEMO fell behind early and stranded 12 baserunners, including two in the first, fourth, seventh and eighth innings.
UCA took a quick lead in the bottom of the first inning. With two outs and a runner on, Keaton Presley hit a home run over the left field wall to put the Bears up 2-0.
The Bears stretched their lead in the third inning where they used four hits to push across two more runs. T.J. Black led things off with a single to left center and scored on Josh Somdecerff's double down the left field line. Somdecerff touched home on a single by Tyler Smith giving UCA a 4-0 advantage.
SEMO got on the board in the top of the fourth inning. Tristen Gagan singled and Justin Dirden walked. Later in the inning, Alex Nielsen knocked in Dirden on a two-out single to right center making it a 4-1 game.
A single by Hunter Strong and a pair of errors on the same play allowed Rigo Aguilar to score the first of two UCA runs in the bottom half of the fourth. Somdecerff followed the wild play up with a single to left field to score Strong for another unearned tally as the Bears increased their lead to 6-1.
Justin Dirden launched his first career home run to right field narrowing UCA's lead to 6-2 in the top of the sixth.
SEMO continued to chip away at the Bears lead in the top of the seventh, where it loaded the bases with one out. Peyton Faulkner walked and advanced to second on a single by Chase Urhahn. Following a Trevor Ezell strikeout, Gagan singled. Dirden flied out to right and Faulkner scored to trim UCA's margin to 6-3.
Presley hit his second home run, this time to left, capping the Bears 7-3 win.
Freshman Gavin Stone (1-0) picked up the win. Stone recorded four strikeouts and allowed two runs in four innings. Mark Moyer was credited with his first save of the season.
Ryan Losman (0-2) suffered the loss. Losman allowed four runs on five hits in 2.1 innings. It was his first start of the season.
Logan Winder pitched well out of the Redhawks bullpen. Winder struck out four, allowed two runs and scattered three hits in 3.2 innings. At one time, he retired nine-straight UCA hitters.
Gagan went 3-for-5 to lead SEMO, which notched seven hits. Urhahn followed with two.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 9, AUSTIN PEAY 0
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University’s baseball team fell behind early and could not recover, dropping a 9-0 nonconference decision to Middle Tennessee, Tuesday night at Raymond C. Hand Park.
Middle Tennessee (9-8) jumped out a quick lead when it sent 11 batters to the plate in the first inning, scoring six runs. Left fielder Blake Benefield had a two-run double and catcher Jake Hagenow added a two-run single to help build the 6-0 lead.
Austin Peay (10-7) saw its bullpen enter the game in the first inning and rally to keep the Blue Raiders largely in check through the final eight innings. Greg Leban entered with two outs in the first inning and provided 3.2 innings of scoreless relief, before allowing a home run in the fifth. Kyle Wilson, Ross Walker and Ethan Clark followed Leban to finish the contest, allowing just one run between them.
The Governors offense could not solve the Middle Tennessee pitching staff, particularly starter Grant Williams (2-1) who tossed six scoreless innings while scattering three hits and five walks while striking out six batters. Three other Blue Raiders pitchers each tossed a scoreless inning to complete the shutout.
Catcher David Martinez had a third-inning double in his 1-for-3 outing. Second baseman Malcolm Tipler, third baseman Max Remy and pinch hitter Brett Newberg each had a hit in the Govs four-hit outing.
First baseman Brett Stratinsky paced the Blue Raiders with a 2-for-4, three RBI outing that included a two-run home run in the fifth inning.
UT MARTIN 11, UNION 5
JACKSON, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball squad defeated in-state rival Union University 11-5 this evening.
UT Martin (4-12, 1-2 OVC) was led by Collin Edwards, who reached base a total of five times by going a perfect 3-for-3 while also drawing two walks and was able to swipe a pair of bases along the way. Jordan Stoner tallied three hits and Carson Shrode connected for two base knocks while both Tyler Albright and Blake Davis got a hit each. Shrode led the team with two RBIs followed by Stoner and Harford with one apiece.
Seth Rayburn (1-0) picked up the win out of the bullpen as he tossed three innings of relief with a pair of strikeouts following Dalton Westfall’s start of three innings, no earned runs and four strikeouts. The trio of Jefferey O’Doherty, Zack Denney and David Hussey showed out tonight as only two Union Bulldogs were able to get on base in their three innings of work (one full inning each) and two strikeouts in that span.
The Skyhawks looked to get off to a good start as Stoner drew a six-pitch walk to begin the affair. He would be erased by a double play ball before Albright would draw a walk of his own, but no runs came in the first frame.
Union struck for a pair of runs in the bottom of the first to give the Bulldogs an early 2-0 advantage.
UT Martin would hit back with a trifecta of runs in the second. Edwards led off by singling to center field on the first pitch he saw followed by a Davis single. Edwards was able to cross home plate on a throwing error as Davis moved up to second. Ethan Whitley drew a four-pitch walk later followed by a Billy Edwards walk to load the bases. A Union wild pitch would allow Davis to come home and move the trailing runners up a base each. Stoner then grounded out to third base to plate Whitley to put the Skyhawks up 3-2.
Westfall made quick work of the Union half of the second as he retired the side on 13 pitches. He recorded a pair of strikeouts, both swinging, with a foul out sandwiched in between.
Albright led off the UT Martin third with a double to right center and was later able to advance to third base on a wild pitch just. Collin Edwards was able to draw a walk and then swiped second and moved on up to third base on a throwing error which allowed Albright to cross home plate to push the Skyhawk lead out to 4-2.
With two outs in the fourth, UT Martin showed signs of life as Stoner was able to connect for a double followed by a Harford walk but to no avail.
Rayburn came in dealing in the fourth frame as he retired the side on a pair of flyouts and a groundout on just eight pitches.
In the fifth inning, Collin Edwards was able to single through the left side and then recorded his second steal on the evening. He was then shifted to third on a groundout but unable to be driven in.
Rayburn kept up the good work in the fifth as he found the first out on a flyout to center followed by a three-pitch strikeout. He then issued a walk but found a handy groundball to end the inning.
Shrode led off the sixth with a single to center followed by another Billy Edwards walk. Stoner then singled back to the pitcher to juice the bases. A Harford groundout tacked on a run for the Skyhawks. Albright reached on a fielder’s choice but Edwards would be out at home to end the inning but UT Martin would have given itself a 5-2 lead.
Union put up a fight in the home half of the sixth to temporarily even things up at 5-5.
The Skyhawks unloaded in the seventh as Collin Edwards drew a four-pitch walk followed by Davis showing he could work the count too as he drew an eight-pitch walk. Whitley was then able to reach safely on an error and a heads-up Edwards was able to cross home plate. Shrode reached on an error as well, advancing to second in the process with both Davis and Whitley coming home. A Billy Edwards groundout was enough to move Shrode over to third just in time for a wild pitch which allowed him to cross the plate as well, UT Martin reclaiming a 9-5 lead.
O’Doherty came on in the seventh and kept the ball in the air by retiring the side on a pair of flyouts and a lineout on 10 pitches.
JoJo Allen pinch hit for Ben Aslett in the eighth inning and showed great discipline as he drew a four-pitch walk followed by a Collin Edwards single. Whitley then drew a four-pitch walk of his own to load the bases. A Shrode double to right field was enough to plate both Allen and Edwards to push the Skyhawk lead up to 11-5, the ultimate final score.
Denney worked around a pair of hits in the eighth as he recorded his first out on a popup to short followed by a groundout. After allowing the pair of hits, he fanned a Bulldog to end the inning unscathed.
TENNESSEE TECH 8, WEST VIRGINIA 0
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - A brilliant effort on the hill backed by a steady offensive attack propelled the Tennessee Tech baseball team to its first shutout victory of the season Tuesday evening, an 8-0 win over West Virginia at Bush Stadium at the Averitt Express Baseball Complex.
Making his third start of the season Hursey was nearly infallible on the mound for the Golden Eagles (10-5), keeping the Mountaineers (7-7) at bay for nearly the entire contest. The southpaw allowed just three base runners while completing a career-high eight innings over 108 pitches.
Hursey used a steady dose of swing-and-miss stuff combined with the ability to force fly balls and ground outs to constantly keep the WVU offense guessing. After surrendering a leadoff hit in the second inning, where the base runner reached second on a fielding error, the junior rebounded nicely, racking up back-to-back strikeouts followed by a ground ball out up the middle to senior shortstop David Garza.
West Virginia threatened to score again in the third after Hursey record a pair of quick outs. The Mountaineers rallied with a base hit and a walk, but Tech's leader on the hill forced a fly ball out to escape the inning.
The junior college transfer got into such a groove on the bump, that he retired the final 16 batters he faced. He garnered his second victory of the season while finishing with eight strike outs. Reliever Colton Provey finished off the game, keeping the shutout in tact with a three-pitch punch out to complete the ninth inning.
Offensively, the Golden Eagles made sure to provide Hursey with an early lead, plating a run in the bottom of the second. Senior first baseman Chase Chambers drew a leadoff walk and later scored on a ground out for the eventual winning run.
Chambers doubled the Tech advantage in the fourth, crushing an absolute bomb through the wind and over the fence in right center field to lead off the frame and build a 2-0 lead. In the fifth, the Golden Eagles blew the game wide open with a four-spot.
Three one-out walks in-a-row set up junior Kevin Strohschein for an RBI opportunity; one he capitalized on by beating out a double play attempt for a fielder's choice to second base. His ability to beat the throw kept the inning alive, allowing Chambers to draw his second walk of the game and load the bases again.
Then, down 0-2 in the count, junior second baseman John Ham kept his red-hot play rolling as he ripped a bases-clearing double down the third base line to make it a 6-0 lead in favor of the Golden Eagles. Tech plated two more insurance runs in the sixth, for good measure.
Ham led the way with a 3-for-4 day at the plate and the three RBI just a day after securing his second Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week honor of the season. Chambers scored three runs on the day while finishing 1-for-2 with his fifth home run of the year. Strohschein tallied two RBI as well.
JACKSON STATE 4, MOREHEAD STATE 0
MOREHEAD, Ky. - In the opener the game was suspended Tuesday night with Jackson State leading 4-0 after 3.5 innings.
Neither team surrendered a run today. Eagle pitchers John Sherman, John Hurayt, Cory Conway and Jeff Purnell gave up just two hits combined in the final six at-bats for the visitors. One was a double, and the other was a single where the hitter was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double.
The Eagles had runners in scoring position in the fourth, seventh and ninth frames but could not push one across. Bryce Hensor singled in the ninth off reliever Jose Tirado, and Jake Hammon nailed a double to put runners on second and third. But, Tirado closed the door with two strikeouts.
MSU had eight hits as Hensor and Hammon tallied two each.
Starter David Looney (0-2) was tagged the loss, surrendering three runs in the first 1.2 innings on Tuesday.