TUESDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Illinois 14, Saint Louis 11
@Southern Illinois 2,
Southeast Missouri 0
Belmont 8, @Lipscomb 3
Memphis 10,
@Murray State 6
@UT Martin 10, Christian Brothers 4
@Middle Tennessee 10,
Austin Peay 4
@Alabama State 6,
Jacksonville State 2
EASTERN ILLINOIS 14, SAINT LOUIS 11
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois combined for seven home runs in their win Tuesday against Saint Louis University. EIU was able to hold of Saint Louis' comeback efforts winning, 14-11.
With the win Eastern Illinois improves to 14-25, while Saint Louis drops to 25-15 on the season.
Saint Louis struck the scoring column first in the top of the first inning when Jake Garella drove a double into the right field gap.
The Panthers would answer back in the bottom of the first inning hitting three of their seven home runs on the afternoon. Dougie Parks led off the power surge hitting the first Panther home run to left center. Jimmy Govern connected EIU's second home run of the inning. The home run marked Govern's second consecutive game with a home run. Hunter Beetley powered a three run homer to center field to give the Panthers a 6-1 lead.
Eastern Illinois would hit two home runs in both the bottom of the second inning. Jimmy Huber connected on his first of two home runs on the afternoon in the second inning. Huber drove a two run homer to right field. Hunter Morris who currently leads the Panthers in home runs joined the hit parade belting a solo home run to left center.
Saint Louis was able to cut the lead down to 9-8 in the top of the fourth inning. Alex King drove in the Billikins first run of the inning on a sacrifice fly. Parker Sniatynski would drive a three run homer to left field to cut the Panthers lead to one run.
The Panthers would hit two home runs in the bottom of the fifth and seventh innings. Huber drove a three run homer to right center for his second home run of the afternoon.
Jake Haberer picked up his second save of the season tossing 2.0 innings. Haberer struck out three batters, allowed one hit, one run, and a walk.
Carson Haws earned the win on the mound for the Panthers tossing 3.0 innings, with four hits, four strikeouts, and two walks.
Huber finished 2-for-4 with five RBIs, two home runs, two runs, and a walk. Beetley went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, two runs, a home run, and a walk.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 2, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 0
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Connor Kopach went 2-for-4 with one RBI and a run scored, while Dylan Givens, Trey McDaniel and Ryan Netemeyer combined on a two-hit shutout to lead Southern Illinois (21-20) to a 2-0 victory over Southeast Missouri (20-21) Tuesday at Richard "Itchy" Jones Stadium.
Niko Vasic doubled to left center to get in scoring position and scored the game's first run when Kopach singled through the left side off SEMO reliever Cody Creed. Kopach's hit came right after Alex Lyon flied out to right.
Kopach then singled to lead off the bottom of the eighth inning, stole second and went to third on Logan Blackfan's fly ball to left field. Austin Ulick's one-out base hit scored Kopach to grab SIU a 2-0 advantage.
SEMO's best scoring opportunity came in the top of the eighth inning. Connor Basler walked, stole second and went to third when Chase Urhahn reached on a throwing error. Basler, the only Redhawk to make it past second base in the game, was left in scoring position after Peyton Faulkner struck out to end the inning.
The Redhawks had only two hits, their second-fewest in a game this season. Urhahn and Trevor Ezell each had a single. Combined, SEMO finished with just three hits in two matchups with the Salukis this year.
Cody Creed (0-2) was charged with the loss. Creed relieved starter Ashton Holyfield in the fourth inning. He allowed one run on two hits, struck out three and walked one in 3.1 frames.
Dylan Givens (4-0) picked up the win. Givens struck out six, did not allow a walk and scattered two hits in seven scoreless innings.
McDaniel struck out two in one inning before giving way to Netemeyer. Netemeyer pitched a perfect ninth inning to claim his team-high seventh save.
SIU completed a two-game sweep of SEMO this season, shutting out the Redhawks in each contest.
BELMONT 8, LIPSCOMB 3
NASHVILLE - Belmont Baseball snapped a four-game losing skid Tuesday night as they completed a season sweep of the rival Lipscomb Bisons. The Bruins won the final game of the series 8-3.
Belmont set the tone of the night early. On the first pitch of the game, senior Kyle Conger (Brentwood, Tenn.) led things off with a triple to center field on the first pitch of the game. Sophomore Matt Cogen (Franklin, Tenn.) followed suit, plating the first run with a triple of his own. Cogen would then score on a wild pitch and the Bruins would take an early 2-0 lead after the top of the first inning.
Lipscomb answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the first after a walk and three base hits, but the Bruins got out of the inning with little damage and a 2-1 lead after stranding two Bisons on base.
After a scoreless second inning, Belmont tallied their third run in the top of the third inning. Even though the Bruins didn't record a hit in the inning Conger and junior Chas Hadden (Morristown, Tenn.) worked walks and Conger scored on another wild pitch to take a 3-1 lead.
After two quick outs in the top of the fifth, Cogen stepped up to the plate and delivered a solo home run well over the center field fence for his fourth home run and 34th RBI of the season to increase the lead 4-1. Hadden singled to left field at the next at-bat and senior Ben Kocher (Zionsville, Ind.) came up next and delivered a huge RBI double down the left field line that scored Hadden all the way from first base to give Belmont a 5-1 lead.
The Bisons tried to get something going in the bottom of the fifth inning. After a leadoff double and a walk, Lipscomb had runners on the corners with no outs. Sophomore Michael Matter (Ft. Myers, Fla.) buckled down and pitched beautifully the rest of the inning and struck out one and forced a fly out and ground out the end the inning with no further damage.
The Bruins scored once again in the top of the sixth inning. After freshman Jordan Henshaw (New Market, Ala.) worked a leadoff walk, senior Cully Day (Mahomet, Ill.) put a ball into play with a single to left field. Conger then delivered a beautiful sacrifice fly to left field that scored the sixth run of the night. The Bisons got out of the inning with their first strikeout of the night and BU took a 6-1.
After five scoreless innings, Lipscomb scored in the bottom of the seventh inning, taking advantage of a Belmont error to cut the lead 6-2. The Bisons' continued to chip away at the lead with a two-out solo home run in the bottom of the eighth the put the pressure on the Bruins cutting the lead 6-3.
Belmont responded in the top of the ninth, tacking on two more runs in the inning. Leadoff man, junior Hunter Holland (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) reached first base on an error by the first baseman. With one out, junior Zach Ehrhart (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) delivered a RBI double down the third base line that scored Holland. Cogen continued to have a hot bat, as he sent a single to right field before Hadden allowed Ehrhart to score on a fielder's choice RBI. Belmont put runners on first and second with two outs, but they were stranded. Belmont took a comfortable 8-3 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth where freshman Logan Bowen (Bowling Green, Ky.) was called upon to close things out on the mound for the Bruins.
Lipscomb put together a late rally, scoring three runs in the bottom of the ninth. After two walks, a hit-batsmen, and two consecutive base hits, Lipscomb pulled within two runs. Bowen buckled down and retired the next three Bisons to secure the 8-6 victory.
Five Belmont pitchers saw action on the bump. The group struck out eight, walked three, and only gave up two earned runs.
Matter picked up his second win of the season after a beautiful outing. He pitched five complete innings, scattered just four hits, struck out four and walked just one. He forced Belmont's first three up, three down inning of the game and allowed just one unearned run.
MEMPHIS 10, MURRAY STATE 6
MURRAY, Ky. - Memphis got a two-out grand slam in the top of the ninth inning as it rallied to stun Murray State Tuesday night at Reagan Field, 10-6. MSU got the first two outs of the ninth with ease before the Tigers had three consecutive batters reach prior to the home run.
Tuesday’s contest was a back-and-forth affair as Memphis (14-28) took an early lead with a two-run top of the second. MSU (17-23) was able to cut the deficit in half in the bottom half of the inning when Kyle Stevens scored from third on an error by the Tigers. Memphis recorded four errors on the night.
After Memphis built its lead back up to 3-1 in the fourth, the Racers got a three-run fifth inning to take their first lead of the night, 4-3. A Davis Sims single through the left side of the infield scored two and three pitches later Mike Farnell broke the tie with a single to right.
The Tigers would reclaim the lead in the top of the sixth with a pair of runs to make the score 5-4. However, a Gavin Wehby RBI groundout in the bottom half of the sixth tied the score at 5-5. Then in the seventh, the Racers went up 6-5 when Farnell scored from third on a throwing error by the Tigers’ catcher trying to pick Farnell off third base. In the eighth, Memphis would tie the score at 6-6 with another two-out hit.
Both teams notched 10 hits on the night with MSU tallying three extra-base hits (two doubles and a triple) while the Tigers had two. Sims and Stevens both had two-hit nights in the loss. Sims hit his 23rd double of the season in the first inning to set the single-season program record for doubles, breaking a tie with former teammate Tyler Lawrence. Stevens had a double and a triple on the night. Ryan Perkins went 1-of-3 and scored a pair of runs to lead the Racers.
Tyler Anderson took the loss for MSU as he pitched the ninth inning. The Racers used six total pitchers Tuesday. Gray Dorsey got the start, his second of the season while Chance Carner, Braydon Cook, Peyton Hayes and Caleb Hicks all made relief appearances. Cook and Hicks each threw three solid innings on the night.
UT MARTIN 10, CHRISTIAN BROTHERS 4
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team defeated in-state opponent Christian Brothers by a 10-4 margin this evening.
UT Martin (8-30) was led by Collin Edwards’ three RBI performance. The Arnold, Mo. native belted a three-run homer to account for his run production. Blake Davis (two hits and two RBIs) and Casey Harford (one hit and two RBIs) also swung heavy bats as both tallied a double each. The trio of Tyler Albright, Ben Aslett and Ethan Whitley all accounted for one run driven in apiece to round out the scoring column. Jordan Stoner led the squad in hits as he collected three base knocks in the contest, one of which was a triple. Carson Shrode also connected for a base knock in the contest.
Austen Bullington (1-2) twirled in the start as he carried a no-hitter into the fourth inning and allowed just one hit and one walk in his time on the bump. He would record a pair of strikeouts in his five-inning start to give the Skyhawks a solid start on the mound. Zack Denney would come on in relief to throw for one inning. He allowed one earned run in his frame of work. Seth Rayburn tossed one inning in the contest but conceded one run while ringing up a Buccaneer along the way. Nick Wohlbold recorded one inning of work on the day and allowed two earned runs but was able to sit down two batters via the strikeout. Dalton Westfall finished out the game and pitched a perfect inning on 13 pitches.
Bullington would come out of the gate on fire as he needed just 11 pitches to get out of the first inning while recording a punchout in the process.
UT Martin got to work early as Shrode got things started as he poked a single through the left side. Albright would earn an eight-pitch walk to set the table for an Aslett double down the right field line to plate Shrode. Davis would then single up the middle to score both Albright and Aslett. Collin Edwards reached first on a fielding error before Harford roped a double to left field to bring in Davis and Edwards to give the Skyhawks an early 5-0 advantage.
Bullington would issue a walk to lead off the second but found a friendly fly ball followed by a double-play ball to get out of the inning unscathed.
The UT Martin second looked similar to the first as Stoner led off the frame with an infield single and later swiped second before moving up to third on a wild pitch. A timely Albright single through the right side would plate Stoner. Aslett was sent to first on four straight balls to put men on first and second. Then came the three-run shot by Collin Edwards to left field to push the Skyhawk lead out to 9-0.
Sitting down the first batter in the third on strikes, Bullington then found a pair of groundballs to get out of the third. He would concede his first base knock of the contest in the fourth as the leadoff man tallied a single to left. Bullington would get out of the inning unharmed as he got two flyouts and a fielder’s choice.
Davis got things started in the fourth for the Skyhawks as he doubled down the left field line. A Whitley single to center would be good to plate teammate Davis to extend the UT Martin lead to 10-0.
Bullington made quick work of the fifth inning as he needed only 10 pitches to retire the side in order.
Christian Brothers would go on to four runs from the sixth to eighth innings to narrow the score to 10-4.
Westfall came on in the ninth to close the door on the game as groundballs ruled the inning. He needed only 13 pitches to end the game.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 10, AUSTIN PEAY 4
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University’s baseball team grabbed an early lead but could not hold off a late Middle Tennessee charge in a 10-4 nonconference loss, Tuesday night at Reese Smith Jr. Field.
Austin Peay (23-18) saw starting pitcher Josh Rye set the tone early, providing four scoreless innings to start the game, striking out three of the 15 batters he faced in the scoreless start.
The Governors offense backed up Rye early, striking for a run in the first inning after loading the bases with two out. Austin Peay would add to its lead in the fifth, again loading the bases but with one out. A passed ball allowed a run to score and left fielder Kyle Wilson and catcher Alex Sala each drove in a run, extending the Govs lead to 4-0.
Rye would return to the mound with that lead and retired the first two batters he faced in the fifth. However, he would surrender a run after allowing back-to-back doubles that ended his outing. Reliever Ethan Clark would end the threat by striking out the first batter he faced.
Middle Tennessee (21-20-1) would keep plugging away, the fifth-inning run being the first of 10 unanswered runs it would score. The Blue Raiders would tie the game, 4-4, on second baseman Ryan Kemp’s two-run single in the seventh.
But it was the eighth inning that turned the tide for good, the Blue Raiders scoring six runs in the frame. Two runs would score when the Govs defense committed an error on a sacrifice bunt, breaking the tie. After a Kemp sacrifice fly added a run, first baseman Aaron Aucker broke the game open with a three-run home run.
Clark (0-1) would suffer the loss after allowing three runs in two innings of work, allowing two hits and two walks. Rye was left with no decision despite holding MTSU to one run in his 4.2 innings of work, striking out four.
Sala finished the night with two RBI despite not recording a base hit, driving in runs with a first-inning walk and a fifth-inning sacrifice fly. First baseman Parker Phillips had two hits as the Govs were held to five hits.
Kemp and Aucker each had three RBI to lead Middle Tennessee. Shortstop LA Woodward posted a 3-for-4 outing to pace an 11-hit outing by the Blue Raiders. Reliever Tyler Holcombe (4-3) picked up the win with three scoreless innings of relief.
ALABAMA STATE 6, JACKSONVILLE STATE 2
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Jacksonville State split its two-game season series with Alabama State with a 6-2 setback on Tuesday night at the Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex.
The Gamecocks (22-15) were looking to sweep the in-state Hornets after taking the first meeting of the season last Tuesday, 10-5, at Choccolocco Park. The Hornets improved to 22-19 overall.
JSU, riding a four-game winning streak after the midweek win over ASU last Tuesday and a weekend sweep of Belmont in Ohio Valley Conference play, finished with 10 hits with five of them coming in the first three innings, but could not get a key hit to cash in the runs early off of the first two Hornet pitchers.
ASU's third of four pitchers, Chase Laney quieted the JSU bats over three of his four innings of work. Laney (5-) pited four innings out of the bullpen and scattered five hits and allowed the two runs the Gamecocks scored. Laney retired the first six batters he faced and from the third inning until Trent Simpson led off the seventh with a single, ASU pitchers retired 10 in a row.
While the ASU pitchers were keeping JSU off the board, the Hornets were taking advantage of four walks by JSU's five pitchers and a pair of hit batsmen, coupled with four Gamecock fielding miscues. ASU touched JSU starter Andrew Naismith, who was making his second start of the season against ASU, with single runs in the third and fourth. The Hornets expanded the lead with a pair of runs off one hit in the fifth after a trio of walks opened the door for a big inning.
ASU pushed the lead to 6-0 with a solo home run and an RBI single in the sixth.
Freshman Alex Strachan broke up the shutout with his third home run of the season and second against ASU. Strachan, who had a home run in the contest at Choccolocco Park last Tuesday, went opposite field for a two-run home run in the seventh.
Seniors Clayton Daniel and Taylor Hawthorne had two hits each in the loss, while freshman Isaac Alexander added two more hits. With Daniel's two hits at ASU, he inches closer to the 300 career hits mark. He is four hits shy of becoming just the fourth OVC player all time to have 300 or more hits in a career. JSU's all-time career hit leader and OVC career leader, Bert Smith has 323 career hits.