SUNDAY'S SCORES
@Eastern Illinois 11, Tennessee Tech 10
@SIUE 14, Southern Indiana 4
@UT Martin 8, Morehead State 5
@Southeast Missouri 20, Lindenwood 8
@Little Rock 6-5, New Orleans 3-14
EASTERN ILLINOIS 11, TENNESSEE TECH 10
CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois baseball (25-16, 6-9 OVC) wins game three and the series against Tennessee Tech (14-27, 5-10) with a final score of 11-10. EIU and TTU combined for a total of seven home runs on Sunday.
Nicholas Rucker had the hot bat on Sunday after blasting two home runs over the scoreboard in left field. Cole Gober had the third home run for EIU while Lincoln Riley and Logan Eickhoff both had two RBI.
Starting pitcher Tyler Conklin (W, 4-5) picked up his fourth win of the season after throwing in 5.0 innings and allowing seven hits and seven runs while also striking out seven. Peyton Calitri (L, 3-5)only threw in 1.1 innings and allowed seven runs on five hits.
Conklin started off with a great start on the mound with five strikeouts in the first two innings keeping Tennessee Tech off the scoreboard. Panthers would then score seven runs in the second to take the early lead.
Rucker led off the inning with a solo home run, his first of the day. With the bases loaded, Riley hit a single into the gap in center to drive in two more. Eickhoff, Ryan Ignoffo and Kolten Poorman all had an RBI to help EIU take a 7-0 lead.
Tennessee Tech hit their first of four home runs of the game in the third after a two-run shot by John Dyer. Cole Gober followed that in the bottom of the third with the second straight solo home run by EIU. Panthers would lead 8-2 after three.
In the bottom of the fourth, Rucker hit his second home run with a two-run bomb just over the scoreboard. Tech would score three more in the fifth after Dyer's second home run of the game. The Golden Eagles would cut into the lead with a score of 10-5.
Eastern Illinois scored their final run of the game in the fifth with an RBI double by Eickhoff to score Riley. Conklin would come out in the sixth, but would be replaced by Colton Coca after giving up a home run to Preston Ford.
Coca had a throwing error to first base which would bring around two runs. Tennessee Tech then scored another run on a fielder's choice to cut the lead to 11-9.
After Ford's second home run for the Golden Eagles, Zane Robbins entered the game and pitched the final three innings. With two outs and the bases loaded in the seventh, Eickhoff made a diving play in left field to get out of the jam.
Catcher Grant Lashure threw out a runner in the top of the ninth before Robbins ended the game with his third strikeout to secure EIU's 25th win of the season.
SIUE 14, SOUTHERN INDIANA 4
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Drew Mize drove in a career-best six RBIs and SIUE scored 14 runs between the third and fifth innings Sunday on its way to a 14-4 win over Southern Indiana in seven innings at Simmons Baseball Complex.
The Cougars took two of three from the Screaming Eagles and improved to 7-8 in Ohio Valley Conference play and 24-19 overall. USI fell to 15-28 and 6-12 in the OVC.
Southern Indiana took a 1-0 lead in the third when Tucker Ebest connected on his third home run of the series off SIUE starter Teague Conrad.
SIUE answered in the bottom of the inning. After Nick Terrell reached base and went to second on an error, he scored on a single by Brennan Orf. Mize and Avery Owusu-Asiedu then hit back-to-back homers to give SIUE a 4-1 lead. Mize came to the plate in the fourth with the bases loaded and drilled a double to the wall in left field, clearing the bases and pushing the Cougar lead to 7-1.
After USI trimmed the lead to 7-4 in the top fifth, the Cougars responded with seven runs on six hits in the bottom of the inning. John Stallcup walked with the bases loaded, Terrell hit a sacrifice fly and Mize brought home another with a single to center. Owusu-Asiedu plated two with a double, Kyle Ratliff hit a sacrifice fly and Ole Arntson drove home a run with a base hit for the 14-4 lead.
Mize paced the Cougars at the plate going 3-4. Owusu-Asiedu, Arntson, Matthew Klein and Ethan Willoughby had two hits apiece.
Offensively, we were able to string together some big innings in the middle.
Conrad (4-2) worked six innings. He allowed four runs and struck out six. Hayden Cooper worked a scoreless seventh inning.
UT MARTIN 8, MOREHEAD STATE 5
MARTIN, Tenn. - – The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball squad continued its home success in Ohio Valley Conference play this afternoon, defeating Morehead State by an 8-5 margin at Skyhawk Field.
Today’s result marks four OVC home series wins in four tries as UT Martin (15-30, 9-9 OVC) has now taken two out of three games over Eastern Illinois, SIUE, Southern Indiana and Morehead State in front of the home crowd.
The Skyhawks led 5-1 early and staged a late rally after the Eagles (26-16, 10-5 OVC) tied the contest in the top of the seventh.
Eric Steensma managed his best start of the season today, not allowing an earned run while tying a season-high with six innings pitched. The redshirt junior right-hander from Western Springs, Ill. also equaled a career-high with six strikeouts while scattering five hits.
Zach Wager (2-1) was credited with his second win of the weekend as the freshman lefty did not allow a baserunner over the final two innings.
Offensively, Caleb Hobson went 2-for-4 with a career-best four RBI’s – smashing a big two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to provide some insurance. Jack Culumovic and Mac Danford (two hits) each drove in a pair of runs while Hunter McLean and Zac Rice both had two hits with two runs scored.
The Eagles got on the scoreboard early as an unearned run crossed the plate in the top of the first. UT Martin used some two-out magic in the bottom half, scoring three runs on four hits after the first two batters were retired. Will Smith and McLean each singled to start the rally before Culumovic lifted a two-run double down the left field line to give the Skyhawks the lead. Danford followed with an RBI single up the middle, plating Culumovic.
Morehead State was held scoreless in the top of the second thanks to a heads up play from Danford at third base. After a one-out triple, Danford snagged a one-hopper and caught the Eagle baserunner trying to score, firing home before catcher Slade Taylor delivered a perfect strike back to the bag to nab him.
Taylor led off the bottom of the second with a four-pitch walk and moved up to third on a double from Rice. Both Skyhawks came into score on the next batter as Hobson lined a two-run single the opposite way, pushing UT Martin’s lead out to 5-1.
The Skyhawk defense came up with another big play in the top of the third. After one unearned run already crossed the plate, Morehead State threatened to close the gap even more but Rice perfectly hit the cutoff man Blaze Bell, who spun and fired a relay throw to home to cut down another runner trying to score.
Steensma did not concede a hit or a walk over the next two frames, needing just eight pitches to retire the heart of the Eagle order in the top of the fifth. He then put the finishing touches on his day with back-to-back strikeouts to cap off another shutout frame in the sixth.
Morehead State tied the score with three runs (one unearned) in the top of the seventh but UT Martin was unfazed. McLean singled and stole second base with two away in the bottom of the inning, setting up Danford for an RBI single up the middle to nudge the Skyhawks back ahead by a 6-5 margin.
Wager came on in the eighth and quickly silenced the Eagle bats, retiring the side on nine pitches. He didn’t end up needing it but Hobson’s big fly in the bottom of the eighth gave Wager some breathing room in the ninth but the Columbus, Ind. native calmly induced a pair of flyouts and a game-ending groundout against the first three hitters in the Morehead State lineup.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 20, LINDENWOOD 8
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri (26-19, 14-4 OVC) exploded for 19 hits and 20 runs in Sunday's series finale with Lindenwood (9-35, 5-10 OVC) en route to a 20-8 final score in seven innings.
The Redhawks scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning including a walk off, three-run home run from Josh Cameron to capture the third OVC series sweep at home this season.
Cameron finished the day going 2-for-5, including home runs number 15 and 16, with six RBIs and three runs scored.
LHP Haden Dow (4-1) picked up his fourth win of the season as the lefty hurled five innings on the afternoon, allowing just two runs on two hits. Dow recorded three strikeouts in the contest.
The Redhakws put up four runs in the first inning, all with two outs, started with an RBI single to right field by first baseman Lincoln Andrews off LU's starting pitcher Carson Subbert.
A Brett Graber double and a Danny Sperling single to left-center field gave the Redhawks a 4-0 advantage after the first inning.
Subbert (1-3) took the loss in the contest after giving up seven runs on seven hits in just 1.1 innings of work.
Cameron hit his first home run of the day in the bottom of the second inning off of Subbert to give the Redhawks a 7-0 lead.
A Graber single for his third RBI of the day drove in Lincoln Andrews in the second inning as the Redhawks put up back-to-back four run innings.
LU would get on the scoreboard with one swing of the bat, a two-run home run by first baseman Marcus Heusohn.
Jevon Mason responded in the third with a three-run home run. For Mason, the home run was his eighth of the season. Mason ended the day going 3-for-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored.
The Redhawks would put up six in the third inning as a sacrifice fly by Peyton Leeper and another RBI single by Sperling to give SEMO a 14-2 lead after three innings.
An error on LU's third baseman allowed Ben Palmer to reach base, driving in the 15th run of the contest for SEMO in the fifth.
LU would make the game a bit interesting in the sixth inning, with a six-run-sixth, to make the score 15-8.
The Redhawks used a five-run seventh inning to secure the Sunday run-rule victory over Lindenwood.
Six different Redhawks had multi-hit days, including Jevon Mason and Lincoln Andrews with three hits apiece.
LITTLE ROCK 6-5, NEW ORLEANS 3-14
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - The Trojans picked up their 20th win at Gary Hogan Field this season in game one of today's doubleheader before dropping the rubber match against New Orleans. The results moved Little Rock's record to 25-16 on the season looking ahead to a midweek matchup against reigning national champion Ole Miss on Tuesday.
Little Rock starter Noah Burkey started the game out hot, retiring the first six Privateers who stepped up to the plate with three strikeouts through the first two innings. A single began the third, but it was quickly erased with a 6-4-3 double play and a groundout followed, letting Burkey face the minimum through three.
The Trojans got on the board in the bottom of the third inning, with two outs sophomore Alex Seguine sent a single down the left field line before Tyler Williams hit a towering homerun out to deep left field for two runs. The ball was measured at over 108 miles per hour off of the bat and traveled a distance of 444 feet.
After another shutdown inning from Burkey, the Trojan offense got back to action with a leadoff single by Nico Baumbach. A batter later, Luke Pectol hit a frozen rope that crawled its way over the fence in right field for the Trojans second two-run homerun in as many innings. Noah Brewer would then chase the UNO starter a batter later with a double to left.
New Orleans made things interesting in the top of the sixth, a double and error allowed runners on the corners with no outs and the Privateers would end up scoring three runs, one earned, on four hits in the inning. This tightened things up to a one run ballgame and made Little Rock go to the bullpen, bringing on Austin Stubber.
Little Rock was able to get a pair of runs back in the bottom of the sixth, a walk from Skyler Trevino and second double by Brewer put two runners in scoring position with two outs. Christian Bernabe then sent a single through the left side to bring home both runners and give the Trojans some needed breathing room.
Stubber pitched relatively clean innings in the seventh and eighth before things got interesting in the ninth. A single and pair of walks in three batters loaded the bases with just one out and another call was made to the pen, this time for Jacob Weatherley. It took the junior from Jonesboro just two pitches to escape the jam as a tailormade double play ball was rolled Seguine's way, and he converted on the 6-4-3 for the winner.
Pectol and Williams hit two very different homeruns, but got the same result nonetheless. Each had two RBI on the game and scored once. Williams went 1-or-2, adding two walks and a stolen base to his homer. Pectol was 2-for-4 in the game and was one of two Trojans with multiple hits.
Burkey was stellar in his start and perplexed the Privateers through his first five innings of work. He struck out four and walked none, allowed one earned run, and scattered six hits in his 5.2 inning of work while also earning the win.
Little Rock again got out in front early on in game two, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first after a scoreless top of the frame. The first five Trojans reached on four hits and a base on balls. Seguine started things off with a single into center before Williams worked an 11 pitch walk to put two runners on. Pectol then sent a double down the right field line that scored Seguine and put Williams on third. Back to back singles by Baumbach and Trevino scored a run each and at the end of the inning Little Rock led 3-0.
Over the next three innings New Orleans would score five total runs with two in both the second and third and one in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead past the midway point of the shortened seven inning contest.
The Trojans would draw even once more in the bottom of the fifth when a two out double into the right-center gap by Baumbach scored Seguine, and Pectol all the way from first as the game evened up at five apiece.
The Privateers were able to pull away late with four runs in the top of the sixth and five in the seventh to deny the Trojans the series victory.
Baumbach provided a great deal to the Trojan effort in game two with a 2-for-3 performance that saw him drive in three runs, he doubled and singled in the shortened contest.
Seguine was the only other Trojan to collect multiple hits in game two as he singled twice and came around to score two times as well.