TUESDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 4, @Northern Kentucky 2
Southeast Missouri 4, @Saint Louis 1
@Southern Illinois 14,
UT Martin 2
@Evansville 10,
Austin Peay 5
Middle Tennessee 8,
@Tennessee Tech 4
MOREHEAD STATE 4, NORTHERN KENTUCKY 2
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - On a cold afternoon at the Bill Aker Baseball Complex, the Morehead State baseball team used timely hits and a lights-out performance from the bullpen to win 4-2 over Northern Kentucky for its third win in a row.
Morehead State moved to 10-14 on the season with the win.
Trevor Callahan (1-2) picked up his first collegiate win in the contest in his best outing as an Eagle thus far. The freshman right-hander only gave up two runs on four hits while walking three and striking out four NKU batters in his longest outing of the season, 4.0 innings.
After falling behind 1-0 in the second inning, Ryley Preece roped a double to left field that scored Brody Shoupe from second to tie the game. Preece then scored on a double steal with Jackson Feltner to give Morehead State a 2-1 lead.
Northern Kentucky scored a run in the fifth to tie the game, but Jarrett Miller remained true to his 2022 form, coming on with runners on second and third and stranding them there to end the inning. Miller pitched two and a third scoreless innings, striking out two along the way.
In the fifth inning, Alex Jacobs extended his hit streak to 14 games with an RBI single into left that gave Morehead State a 3-2 lead. Jacobs also has reached base in 22 straight games, a team high.
Ashton Roy roped a double down the right field line in the seventh inning and advanced to third on a single from Shoupe before scoring on a wild pitch, a big insurance run for the Eagles.
After Miller recorded the first out of the inning in the bottom of the seventh, John Bakke came out of the bullpen and slammed the door on the Norse, retiring the final eight opposing hitters in order to record an eight-out save, his fifth of the season. Bakke now sits alone in third place in saves in the OVC.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 4, SAINT LOUIS 1
ST. LOUIS - Southeast Missouri (18-5) rallied for four runs in the final three innings and its bullpen pitched seven scoreless innings in a come-from-behind 4-1 win over Saint Louis (12-10) Tuesday.
SEMO completed a two-game season sweep of SLU with its late inning victory.
The Redhawks started their surge in the seventh when Joel Vaske singled through the right side to score Brett Graber and tie the game at 1-1. Graber led off the inning with a walk before touching home on Vaske's hit.
With one out and a runner in scoring position after Jevon Mason singled and stole second, Peyton Leeper was hit by a pitch. Tyler Wilber stepped in and ripped his seventh double of the season down the left field line to grab the Redhawks their first lead. Mason and Leeper both scored on the play giving SEMO a 3-1 advantage.
Lincoln Andrews led off the ninth with a double of his own and scored the game's final run on a one-out single by Spencer Parker. For Parker, it was the first RBI-hit of his NCAA Division I career.
SEMO's bullpen dominated the last seven innings of the contest and, as a result, did not allow a run for the fourth game in a row.
Relievers Alex Esker and Anthony Klein were outstanding. Esker worked 3.1 innings of scoreless one-hit baseball and recorded seven fly ball outs along the way.
Meanwhile, Klein, a St. Louis native, earned his first career win. He did not allow a hit, struck out five and walked none in 3.2 innings. Klein retired the Billikens in order in the ninth, as well.
The Redhawk bullpen has now pitched 19.1 consecutive scoreless innings, all of which came during SEMO's current four-game winning streak.
Offensively, SEMO outhit SLU, 7-3. It marked the 12th time the Redhawks outhit their opponent this season. SEMO is 12-0 in those contests. Additionally, the Redhawks finished the month of March with a 13-4 record.
Mason and Parker paved the way with two hits each, while Wilber, Vaske and Andrews followed close behind with one apiece.
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 14, UT MARTIN 2
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team bumped up its 2022 home run accumulation to 19 on Tuesday evening in a return to non-conference action, meeting the Salukis of Southern Illinois for the second time in two weeks after a Skyhawk victory at home the first time around.
SIU took a 14-2 final decision as sophomore third-baseman Hunter McLean and designated hitter Wil LaFollette each went yard in the 3rd and 4th innings.
Sending one past the wall for the third time this year, McLean got the Skyhawks on the board first in the team’s eighth at-bat of the contest, repeated by LaFollette in the next frame. The latter HR from the DH represents the fourth time this spring that LaFollette has secured a home run, surging into first place on the roster.
Freshman J. Henry Hobson was given the starting role in the seven-inning affair, seeing relief from Trey Ricko, Warren Lee, and Blake Davis.
EVANSVILLE 10, AUSTIN PEAY 5
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Designated hitter Reid Brown provided three hits but Austin Peay State University’s baseball team could not overcome another Evansville big inning in a 10-5 loss, Tuesday night, at German American Bank Field.
Austin Peay (8-18) scored the game’s first run after posting three hits in the first inning. Left fielder Gino Avros and center fielder TJ Foreman each singled to start the game. After Evansville turned a fly out into a double play, first baseman Ty DeLancey drove in Foreman with a single for the early 1-0 lead.
The Governors had a chance to add to their lead in the second with right fielder Harrison Brown and Reid Brown opening the inning with back-to-back singles. But again, Austin Peay could not capitalize as Evansville struck out two and induced a fly out to end the threat.
Austin Peay starter Collin Loose made the early run stand up through two innings. He worked around walks in both the first and second innings to keep Evansville off the scoreboard. However, he ran into trouble in the third, as four of the five batters he faced in the inning reached safely.
Shortstop Simon Sherry drove in a run with a fielder’s choice and second baseman Brent Widder put Evansville ahead with his RBI single, ending Loose’s outing. The Purple Aces kept the scoring coming against the Governors bullpen with third baseman Evan Berkey providing a RBI single before the Govs could record the second out.
But the out did not stem the Evansville run, with left fielder Danny Borgstrom driving in two with a single. After a walk loaded the bases, designated hitter Mark Shallenberger hit a grand slam to left-center field capping the Purple Aces’ nine-run third inning.
Austin Peay would chip away at the 9-1 deficit with two runs in the fourth and two more in the seventh. The Governors would then load the bases in the ninth, bringing the tying run on deck, but Evansville escaped with a pair of strikeouts to end the game.
Reid Brown went 3-for-5 with an RBI to lead Austin Peay, which out-hit Evansville 11-7. DeLancey and third baseman Michael Robinson had two hits each.
Loose (0-1) allowed four runs on two hits and four walks in 2.1 innings to suffer a loss in his first decision since the end of the 2020 season.
Shallenberger paced the Purple Aces with a 3-for-3, four RBI outing that also saw him score twice. Widder went 2-for-4 with two RBI, including a fourth-inning solo home run.
Evansville reliever Tyler Denu (1-2) notched his first win after limiting Austin Peay to one run on two hits in 2.1 innings of relief in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Purple Aces starter Donovan Shultz (1-2) did not qualify for the win after allowing three runs on six hits over 3.1 innings.
MIDDLE TENNESSEE 8, TENNESSEE TECH 4
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Another late comeback bid just wasn't in the cards for the Tennessee Tech baseball team Tuesday evening, as the Golden Eagles fell to in-state rival Middle Tennessee, 8-4, at Quillen Field and Bush Stadium at the Averitt Express Baseball Complex.
The Blue Raiders got on the scoreboard early and leaned on their starting pitcher for much of the contest, a great recipe on the night with the performance of James Sells. The Middle Tennessee rookie held the potent Tech lineup hitless through five and one-third frames, surrendering his only knock of the night on a bloop single from center fielder Austin Turner with one out in the sixth.
For the night, he lasted six and one-third innings, striking out eight batters and allowing just the one hit and two walks, both coming in the seventh frame. It proved plenty through his outing, as the Blue Raiders scored in the first, second, and third to build an early, 7-0 lead.
Southpaw Brock Smith took over the Golden Eagles on the hill in the fourth frame and cruised for the home squad, holding the Blue Raiders to just one hit and two walks over the next three innings. He also struck out four batters without allowing a run.
Right-hander Travis Odom relieved Smith for the seventh, tossing his own scoreless frame with a punch-out and just one hit allowed. Caleb Pearson covered the final two innings for Tech, allowing one, unearned run on one hit while fanning two.
The Golden Eagles finally broke through on the scoreboard in the eighth inning, with second baseman Noah Hattier working a five-pitch, lead-off walk. Turner followed with a seven-pitch free pass of his own prompting Middle Tennessee's second pitching change of the night.
The move appeared to pay off initially, as the newly inserted reliever needed just three pitches to retire the next two Tech hitters. But then Jason Hinchman happened. The Golden Eagle left fielder pounced on the first pitch he saw, a breaking ball over the plate, and immediately deposited it over the batter's eye in center field for a three-run home run.
It marked the senior slugger's 11th round-tripper of the year and 55th of his career. He now sits just two dingers away from passing Austin Peay's Parker Phillips for third on the Ohio Valley Conference's all-time career home run charts.
The Cookeville crew tried to complete its comeback bid in the ninth, with catcher Hayden Gilliland leading things off with a double to left-center field. First baseman John Dyer followed with an RBI single up the middle, making it an 8-4 game.
After another change on the hill for Middle Tennessee and a quick out, Luke Jones stepped into the box as a pinch-hitter and singled through the right side on an 0-2 count. Turner followed by smashing a line drive to left-center field, but the left fielder was right there to handle it for the second out. The comeback bid ended one batter later with a strikeout.