FRIDAY'S SCORES
Southeast Missouri 6-5, @Eastern Illinois 4-7
Belmont 12-6, @SIUE 11-2
Tennessee Tech 15, @Murray State 8
Morehead State 7, @Austin Peay 6
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 6-5, EASTERN ILLINOIS 4-7
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Southeast Missouri (34-18, 16-7) split a doubleheader with Eastern Illinois (31-19, 11-12) Friday at Coaches Stadium. The Redhawks won game one, 6-4, before dropping the nightcap, 7-5.
Brett Graber, Ty Stauss and Ben Palmer each had two hits to lead SEMO in its game one victory.
The Redhawks used a three-run third inning to key the win.
Peyton Leeper walked, stole second and later scored the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Jevon Mason. Graber followed with a single through the left side and Tyler Wilber added a two-RBI base hit to right center putting SEMO ahead, 3-0.
After EIU pulled within a run on a two-run home run by Dalton Doyle in the bottom of the fourth, the Redhawks tacked on two more runs in the seventh and another in the eighth to bury the Panthers.
Mason scored Joel Vaske when he grounded out to first and Graber knocked in Palmer on a single up the middle in the seventh.
Lincoln Andrews then drove in Stauss on a single to right for the Redhawks other run in the eighth.
Both SEMO and EIU finished with nine hits.
Jason Rackers (5-3) pitched seven strong innings allowing just two runs on five hits. Rackers also struck out six and walked two as he matched his longest start of the season.
Blake Cisneros was credited with his first save of the year out of SEMO's bullpen. Cisneros recorded the final two outs of the contest.
In game two, SEMO jumped out to a five-run first inning lead. The Redhawks used six hits to fuel their big inning.
However, after that the Redhawk had just three hits the rest of the way and EIU was able to pull off its come-from-behind victory.
Stauss had another multiple hit game going 2-for-3 with a run scored to lead SEMO in game two.
Cisneros (4-1) suffered the loss in relief. He gave up one run on one hit, struck ou tone and walked one in 1.1 innings.
BELMONT 12-6, SIUE 11-2
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - For the first time since joining the Ohio Valley Conference, the Belmont University baseball team secured the outright OVC regular season championship and the No. 1 seed in the OVC Championship thanks to two thrilling wins on Friday in Edwardsville, Ill., to put a bow on the most successful regular season in program history.
Belmont (37-19, 18-6 OVC) won both games of the doubleheader against Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville on Friday to secure the series win over the Cougars and the regular season championship in the process.
After dropping the series opener to SIUE on Thursday, the Bruins needed two wins on Friday combined with a Southeast Missouri loss to clinch the regular season title.
Thanks to a thrilling come-from-behind 12-11 victory in eleven innings in the first game and a home run party in a 6-2 win in the second game, the Bruins secured their first OVC championship.
Southeast Missouri's 7-5 loss to Eastern Illinois midway through the day meant two wins on Friday for the Bruins would be enough secure the program's first OVC title.
The 37 wins are tied for the most for the Bruins in a regular season in program history, equaling the 37 wins totaled by the 2013 team.
The first game on Friday went a season-long eleven innings, with the Bruins coming from down four runs to eventually emerge victorious, 12-11.
Belmont trailed 9-5 after six frames, but erupted for three runs in the seventh and two runs in the top of the ninth to take a 10-9 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth. The Cougars would then tie it to force extras, setting up a dramatic final few frames that ended with Belmont holding on to win by a run.
SIUE jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings, but John Behrends provided an instant lift with a towering three-run home run in the top of the third inning to make it 4-3.
Then in the sixth, Guy Lipscomb and Brodey Heaton hit back-to-back solo home runs to put the Bruins in front, 5-4.
The Cougars responded with a five-run home sixth inning to re-take the lead, 9-5.
However, Belmont refused to quit. RBI doubles from Carson Shacklett and Lipscomb and an RBI groundout from Heaton made it 9-8 in the seventh inning, and a clutch Behrends double in the top of the ninth drove in Drew Lowry and tied it up at 9-9.
Behrends proceeded to steal third base and then score the go-ahead run when the SIUE's throw down went awry.
In the top of the tenth, Jack Rando singled through the left side to bring in Jackson Campbell and put the Bruins back in front, 11-10. After SIUE tied it again and sent it to the eleventh inning, Mason Landers delivered the game-winning hit with a double to center field that scored Lipscomb.
Kyle Brennan (W, 3-4) recorded the final three outs in the bottom of the eleventh to secure the 12-11 victory.
Game Two of the doubleheader took on a different flavor from the previous two contests in the series, with both starting pitchers grinding out three scoreless innings before the first runs came across.
For the third time on the weekend, SIUE grabbed the first lead, plating one run in the bottom of the fourth to take a 1-0 lead.
With the score still at 1-0 going into the sixth inning, the Bruin bats awakened in a big way with an RBI Heaton double and a Landers sacrifice fly that handed Belmont the 2-1 advantage.
In the bottom of the sixth with two outs, a Cougar batter hit a towering fly ball to left field, where Drew Lowry was making his first start of the season at the position. With a perfectly-timed jump, Lowry robbed a home run from over the fence and kept Belmont in front, 2-1.
A sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh from Grayson Taylor drove in Blake Barton and give the Bruins an insurance run, shortly before Lipscomb hit his second home run of the day to right field and push the Belmont lead to 4-1.
Back to back home runs from Heaton and Tommy Crider in the eighth inning gave Belmont the necessary cushion to hold on for the 6-2 win, and send the Bruin dugout on the first base side over the railing and into a celebration.
Heaton finished 4-for-5 in the game with a home run, a double, and two RBIs. Aaron Hubbell (W, 2-2) pitched effectively in relief, going 3.1 innings while allowing just one hit and striking out four while walking one.
TENNESSEE TECH 15, MURRAY STATE 8
MURRAY, Ky. - Despite a slow start, the Tennessee Tech baseball team rallied and cruised to a 15-8 victory at Murray State Friday evening, squaring its Ohio Valley Conference series at 1-1.
Like Thursday night, the Racers (30-23, 11-12) were quick to take the lead on their home turf at Reagan Field, plating six runs in the first inning on just two hits. This time however, the Golden Eagles (26-25, 10-13) were quick to respond.
In the second, the purple and gold went to work, eventually battling all the way back to take the lead at 7-6. With a runner on first, designated hitter Luke Jones got things started for the Golden Eagles, blasting a two-run shot to left field for his sixth trot of the year and second in as many days.
A hit-by-pitch, walk, and base hit loaded the bases for Tech and prompted a pitching change for the Racers, but it didn't make a difference. On the first pitch he saw from the new Murray State hurler, third baseman Gabe Lacy used one swing to even the score at 6-6. Crushing his third grand slam of the year, and tying a program record for most in a single season in the process, Lacy tallied his 11th dinger of the season.
Left fielder Jason Hinchman made it back-to-back jacks four pitches later, smashing a hanging breaking ball to left-center field for his 22nd round-tripper of the season and 66th of his career, extending the OVC and program record. His tank marked Tech's 100th of the year as well, ranking the 2022 squad second in program history to just the 2018 team and its 135 long balls.
Shortstop Ed Johnson eked the lead out by another run in the third, poking an RBI double to right-center field, but the Racers answered back immediately with a run in the bottom of the third. Up 8-7, Tech again tried to expand its advantage in the fifth, with Hinchman providing an RBI single to left field. Again, the home team matched the effort with a solo run to cut the deficit back to one.
In the sixth, the Golden Eagles kept applying the pressure, finally gathering some breathing room thanks to RBI base knocks by second baseman Noah Hattier and Johnson.
Leading 11-8, Tech put the game out of reach for good in the eighth, blowing things open with four more runs. Johnson started with an RBI single up the middle and was followed by an RBI single to shortstop by Lacy. Hinchman drove in two more with a base hit to left field, accounting for the 15-8 final.
Both Johnson and Jones led the Tech bats with four hits each, with Johnson boasting three RBI and three runs scored while Jones scored four times with two RBI. Lacy paced the team with five RBI on three hits while Hinchman tacked on four RBI with one scored. Hattier and catcher Hayden Gilliland each recorded three hits as well.
On the mound, Brock Myers (5-1) picked up his fifth win of the year, finishing the final five frames with just one earned run allowed. The senior scattered four hits and a walk while striking out six Racer batters. Connor Adams added three and two-third frames of solid relief prior to Myers' entrance, allowing two runs while fanning four.
MOREHEAD STATE 7, AUSTIN PEAY 6
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Coming in with a chance to secure a top four seed in the OVC Tournament, the Morehead State baseball team won their fourth straight game Friday over Austin Peay 7-6. The Eagles (26-26) secured the three seed in the OVC Tournament with the win (and a loss from SIUE) and reached the .500 mark for the first time in the penultimate contest of the 2022 regular season.
Luke Helton (W, 3-6) took the mound for the Eagles and delivered his finest start as an Eagle, tying his career-high in strikeouts. Helton punched out nine Govs over six innings while allowing only two runs on five hits in his second win of the season. Helton has been a workhorse in 2022 for MSU, finishing the regular season with 73.1 innings pitched.
The Eagles fell behind early, as Austin Peay scored a run on a two-out double in the second inning to take a 1-0 lead. In the third, Jackson Feltner (3-3, 2B, RBI) smacked a ground rule double and tied the game at one, before an infield single from Nick Gooden gave the Eagles a 2-1 lead. The Govs tied the game in the bottom half on a solo home run by Ty DeLancey.
A scoreless fourth inning passed before the Eagles took the lead back in the fifth. Ryley Preece led off the inning with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly from Roman Kuntz to give MSU a 3-2 lead.
Ryley Preece (2-5, HR, 3B, RBI, 3 R) went deep for the second time in as many days in the sixth, a solo shot to give Morehead State a 4-2 lead. Preece has 14 homers this season, and six round trippers in five career games in Clarksville.
Roman Kuntz (1-4, 2 RBI) knocked in another with a single in the eighth inning. Austin Peay could have ended the inning with two men on, but two errors on one play by the Govs allowed two more runs to score in the inning, giving the Eagles a 7-2 lead.
John Sherman (1.2 IP, 4 K) threw a scoreless inning in the seventh, and got two outs in the eighth before giving the ball to Joe Rotkis, who struck out the only batter he faced, ending the inning and stranding two runners in scoring position.
The Govs made things interesting in the ninth, plating four runs in the inning, but John Bakke settled down and got John McDonald to flyout to end the game.