SATURDAY'S SCORES
Belmont 10-17, @Morehead State 9-3
Jacksonville State 6-0, @Eastern Illinois 4-4
@SIUE 5, Tennessee Tech 2
Southeast Missouri, 22 @UT Martin 4
@Austin Peay 12, Murray State 10
@Eastern Kentucky 6, Norfolk State 0
BELMONT 10-17, MOREHEAD STATE 9-3
MOREHEAD, Ky. - The Belmont baseball team took both games of the doubleheader against Morehead State by scores of 10-9 and 17-3 on Saturday at Allen Field.
Junior Jackson Campbell combined for five hits and seven RBIs, coming up with his third career multi home run game in game one in the process. Junior Logan Bowen tied his career high of eight strikeouts and picked up his first win of the season in game two.
It only took one pitch for Belmont to get on the board first, with senior Hagan Severance hitting his third home run of the season off the first pitch he saw to give Belmont a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Morehead State responded in the bottom of the second inning, hitting a leadoff single and scoring the tying run off a double down the left field line.
Two singles and a walk loaded the bases for Belmont and senior Chandler Adkins drove in a run after getting hit by the pitch in the top of the third inning. Two doubles by Morehead State in the next half-inning allowed the Eagles to tie the game up again, snagging the 3-2 lead off a solo home run to center field in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Getting two runners on base in the top of the seventh inning, Adkins drove in the tying run with an RBI single. Sophomore Carson Shacklett came up with an RBI single to center field to give Belmont the lead and junior Jackson Campbell hit his fourth home run of the season to drive in three runs to give Belmont a 7-3 lead.
Morehead State, however, responded with a run rally of its own in the bottom of the eighth inning, scoring six runs to take a 9-7 lead. Following Shacklett drawing a two-out walk in the top of the ninth inning, Campbell hit his second home run of the day to center field to tie the game at nine runs each.
Severance drew a walk in the top of the 10th inning and advanced to third base off a balk and wild pitch, scoring the go-ahead run off a passed ball. Junior Kyle Brennan earned his fourth win of the season, pitching the final 2.1 innings and collecting three strikeouts.
Belmont struck first again in game two, with junior Logan Jarvis coming up with his second home run of the season in the top of the second inning. After Severance drew a walk and sophomore John Behrends came up with a single in the top of the third inning, freshman Brodey Heaton hit an RBI single to left field to extend the Belmont lead to two runs.
A bases loaded walk added a third Bruins' run before Adkins hit a grounder that scored Heaton from third base and gave Belmont a 4-0 lead.
Campbell came up with his seventh hit in the last three games with a leadoff double in the top of the fourth inning, with Behrends bringing him home with an RBI single to extend Belmont's lead to five runs. Belmont took advantage off two Morehead State errors later in the inning, pushing the lead out 8-0. The Eagles scored their first run of the game in the next half-inning, coming up with an RBI single to left field.
Belmont loaded the bases in the top of the sixth inning, extending the lead off RBI singles from Shacklett and sophomore Jack Capobianco in addition to a two-RBI double from Campbell to make it a 13-1 advantage. Morehead State scored a run in the next half-inning, but sophomore Tommy Crider hit a two-run home run to put Belmont back ahead by 13 runs.
The Bruins got the bases loaded again in the top of the eighth, capitalizing off a 2-RBI single from Jarvis to extend the Belmont lead to 15 runs. Morehead State scored a run off a wild pitch in the bottom of the eighth inning, but Belmont shut down the Eagles in the final two innings to close it out.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 6-0, EASTERN ILLINOIS 4-4
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Jacksonville State opened its 2020 Ohio Valley Conference slate with a split of a doubleheader with Eastern Illinois on Saturday at Coaches Stadium on the EIU campus.
The Gamecocks started the day with a 6-4 win in the opener, while the Panthers bounced back to force a series rubber game on Sunday with a 4-0 decision in game two of the twinbill. Sunday's series finale will be at 1 p.m. and will be available on the Gamecock Sports Network.
Senior Tre Kirklin's sacrifice fly in the eighth inning of the first game gave JSU a 5-4 lead after the Panthers had rallied to knot the contest. Kirklin, from Kennesaw, Georgia, turned in three hits in the opener and added a bunt single in the second game. Sophomore Carson Crowe gave Jax State some breathing room for the ninth with a solo home run over the fight field wall in the Gamecocks' final at bat.
Jax State started strong with an 10 a.m. first pitch, giving redshirt junior pitcher Dylan Hathcock an early lead. Senior Alex Webb had an RBI in the inning, but EIU's Will Klein escaped a big inning by JSU to get out of a bases loaded jam. The Gamecocks continued to add run support for Hathcock with a two-run fourth inning. Kirklin had the first of his two RBI in the contest with a single to left field, followed by a double by senior Chase Robinson. Robinson had two double in the opener and reached base three times. Kirklin, Robinson and Tanner Anderson all had multiple hits in the game.
EIU tagged a run on Hathcock in the fifth before adding three runs in the sixth to even the contest. Hathcock, who did not figure in to the decision, went 5.1 innings and struck out one and walked one. EIU string together a four-hit inning and took advantage of a JSU miscue to get back in the game.
Junior Colin Casey finished the sixth inning before senior Corley Woods finished the last three frames. Woods posted a pair of strikeouts en route to his first win of the season.
In game two, it was EIU's ability to get RBI singles with two outs and its starter Blake Malatestinic eight innings of shutout pitching. EIU's Ryan Ignoffo put the Panthers on the scoreboard with a solo home run in the second inning. His home run was the only non-two-iut RBI that the Panthers recorded. EIU added RBI in the fourth, fifth and eighth.
Malatestinic held JSU to five hits and retired 11 consecutive Gamecocks from the fourth inning to Kirklin's bunt single in the eighth inning. JSU's big threat came in the fourth inning with the bases loaded, but the right hander got out of the jam. He notched his third win of the season, while Isaiah Magwood was saddled with the loss.
Webb, Crowe, Isaac Alexander and Alex Carignan all had hits in the second game.
SIUE 5, TENNESSEE TECH 2
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - For the second consecutive game, SIUE baseball received a dominant starting pitching performance. Saturday, Kenny Serwa punched out 14 Tennessee Tech hitters as the Cougars defeated the Golden Eagles 5-2 in the second game of a three-game series at Simmons Baseball Complex.
The win moved the Cougars to 2-0 in Ohio Valley Conference play and 7-6 overall. Tennessee Tech fell to 3-10 overall and 0-2 in the OVC. The series win is the first for SIUE over Tennessee Tech since 2015.
Serwa fanned 14 hitters over eight innings of work, establishing a new single-game record for strikeouts in a game by a pitcher during SIUE's Division I era. He allowed just a single earned run on three Golden Eagle hits. He allowed just three hits and walked one. He improved to 4-0 this season and earned the 10th win of his SIUE career.
Brett Pierson paced the Cougars at the plate going 3 for 3 with a solo home run, a double and two RBIs. His homer to lead off the fourth put SIUE on top 1-0.
SIUE added three runs in the fifth to lead 4-0. Josh Ohl drove home a run with a sacrifice fly before Brady Bunten singled to drive in a pair.
Tennessee Tech's Cody Littlejohn took an outside pitch to left in the sixth inning for a two-run home run to cut the SIUE lead to 4-2. Brett Roberts also scored on the homer, after reaching on an error.
Pierson knocked in the Cougars' fifth of the day with a double in the seventh.
Braydon Bone worked the ninth inning, striking out two hitters, to earn his second save of the year.
Christian Herberholz allowed four runs in five innings on he mound for the Golden Eagles. He fell to 0-4 with the loss.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 22, UT MARTIN 4
MARTIN, Tenn. - Justin Dirden was a double shy of hitting for the cycle in Southeast Missouri's (9-6, 2-0 OVC) 22-4 victory over UT Martin (4-10, 0-2 OVC) Saturday.
Danny Wright scored a game-high five runs on three hits with a triple as SEMO won the series.
The Redhawks took a 14-0 lead before the Skyhawks scored a run. The five-inning shutout included just five hits.
SEMO had back-to-back six run innings in the sixth and seventh to pull away from UTM.
The Redhawks sent 21 hitters in the two innings combined. In total, SEMO had eight hits, including three triples, and two home runs in that span.
SEMO went its fifth game in a row with double-digits in the hit column. The Redhawks finished with 21, to tie the most in a game this year.
The Redhawks did not have an error in the game. SEMO went its sixth straight game without an error.
Noah Niznik (3-0) got the win after pitching six full innings. Niznik allowed just one run and had six strikeouts.
Sam Folks (0-3) got the loss on the day.
AUSTIN PEAY 12, MURRAY STATE 10
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Right fielder Skyler Luna had four hits and drove in three runs and Austin Peay State University’s baseball team used a big first inning to down Murray State, 12-10, and level the three-game Ohio Valley Conference series on Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park.
Austin Peay (6-8, 1-1 OVC) had its biggest first-inning offensive output of the year, scoring five runs thanks to some help from the Murray State defense. Twice ground balls found their way past the Racers outfield defense, and each time the result was a pair of APSU runs. First baseman Ty DeLancey and second baseman Malcolm Tipler, the sixth and seventh batters of the inning, were the only batters to record an RBI.
Murray State (8-7, 1-1) answered with two runs in the second, one scoring after an APSU error. However, Austin Peay scored a run in the second after third baseman Gino Avros doubles and then scored on Luna’s first double. The Govs extended their lead with two runs in the third, Avros’ second double of the game driving in DeLancey and Tipler for an 8-2 lead after three.
The Racers did not go away quietly and scored the game’s next five runs. Left fielder Ryan Perkins’ two-run home run was the big blow in a four-run fifth that trimmed Austin Peay’s lead to 8-7.
The two teams traded two-run frames in the sixth and seventh innings. Austin Peay scored twice in the sixth – a run coming courtesy center fielder Garrett Spain’s home run and a DeLancey single. Murray State responded with two runs in the seventh after an APSU error extended the inning. But Luna came to the rescue with a two-run double in the seventh to secure the victory.
Austin Peay starter Kyle Nunn went 3.1 innings and held the Racers to two runs on five hits but did not factor into the decision. Reliever Noah Miller (1-0), making his season’s first appearance, earned the win after allowing one unearned run in his two innings of work. Tucker Weaver followed with 2.1 innings of work, allowing two runs before closer Austin Carder recorded the game’s final out for his third save.
Murray State used six pitchers in the loss with starter Shane Burns (1-2) allowing six runs (four earned) on five hits in 1.2 innings and picking up the loss.
Luna recorded three doubles in his 4-for-5, three RBI outing. Avros went 2-for-3 with two RBI and scored twice. DeLancey posted a 3-for-5, two RBI outing as the Govs put together 15 hits in the win.
First baseman Wes Schad went 4-for-5 with two runs scored to pace Murray State’s 13-hit outing.
EASTERN KENTUCKY 6, NORFOLK STATE 0
RICHMOND, Ky. - Richmond native Jacob Ferris pitched a complete game, 3-hit shutout to lead the Eastern Kentucky University baseball team to a series clinching 6-0 win over Norfolk State University on Saturday at Earle Combs Stadium.
It was the Colonels sixth straight victory. EKU opened the three-game weekend series with a 14-2 win over the Spartans on Friday.
Ferris (2-1) struck out a career-high 10 batters and walked three in nine innings of work.
Logan Thomason’s RBI single to right in the bottom of the first staked Eastern Kentucky (10-2) to an early 1-0 lead, and proved to be all the run support Ferris would need.
The Colonels scored three times in the second to begin to pull away. With two outs and a runner at third base, Michael Brewer drove the ball up the middle to make it 2-0. Later in the inning, Nick Howie drove in two with a double down the left field line.
Howie added a sacrifice fly in the sixth to cap the scoring. The senior outfielder finished with three RBIs while going 1-for-4 at the plate. A.J. Lewis had a 4-for-4 day with a double and a run scored. Daniel Harris IV also went 4-for-4 with a run scored. Brewer had two hits in three at bats, walked once, scored a run and drove in a run.
Three different players had one hit each for Norfolk State (2-11). Three others had one walk each.