FRIDAY'S SCORES
@Lindenwood 7, Little Rock 1
@UT Martin 15, Eastern Illinois 14
Southern Indiana 8, @Morehead State 7
SIUE 13, @Southeast Missouri 9
@Tennessee Tech 12, Western Illinois 2
LINDENWOOD 7, LITTLE ROCK 1
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood baseball team bounced back from game one with determination, soaring to a 7-1 victory over the Little Rock Trojans.
The first, second and seventh innings were scoreless for both teams. Lindenwood scored first and consistently before conceding Little Rock's lone run in the top of the ninth.
The first run for the Lions came in the bottom of the third, when Anthony Stellato singled to right field and Kam Edwards came home. In the bottom of the fourth, Logan Stevens doubled down the left field line to score Bryson Arnette. A long sacrifice ball by Edwards to centerfield brought Stevens across home plate.
In the sixth, Stevens doubled again (down the right field line) and James Jett raced home for another Lindenwood run. Colin Shea reached first on an error by the Trojans' centerfielder and advanced to second, allowing Jack Meyer and Stevens to score.
In the bottom of the eighth, Evan Funkhouser scored on a single by Shea. The Lions finished with seven runs on nine hits.
UT MARTIN 15, EASTERN ILLINOIS 14
MARTIN, Tenn. - For the second straight game, the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team used a flair for the dramatic as Cole Smith walked off Eastern Illinois to win Game 2 by a 15-14 margin, clinching its first Ohio Valley Conference series win of the season.
UT Martin (11-16, 3-2 OVC) bashed five home runs in the game with Zac Rice (3-for-5, four RBI’s) sending two out while Mac Danford (two RBI’s), Will Smith (three runs scored) and Cole Smith (3-4, one double, 3 RBI’s) each cranking one long ball.
Cole Smith sent the Skyhawks home a winner in the bottom of the ninth, lining a single into the gap in right center to plate Will Smith, capping off a comeback from a one-run deficit going into the bottom of the inning.
Eric Steensma started the game on the mound for UT Martin, fanning three batters over three innings. Campbell Cleveland would follow with a scoreless frame while Zach Wager (two innings), Baylor Jones (2.1 frames), Eli Martin and Kaleb Baskin (1-2, 0.2 innings) also made relief appearances during the third straight triumph for the Skyhawks.
The offenses were firing early as two Eastern Illinois runs in the first would quickly be answered by back-to-back jacks by Danford (two-run shot) and Cole Smith (solo homer) as UT Martin would take a 3-2 lead through one inning of play.
Steensma tossed a shutout frame in the second inning but the Panthers (5-18, 0-5 OVC) scored four runs with two outs in the third. Will Smith led off the home half of the inning with a smash to right field to pull the Skyhawks within two runs.
After Cleveland’s clean fourth, Rice lifted off for his first homer of the day in the bottom half for a two-run jack that tied the game at 6-all.
The Panthers took the lead right back in the fifth inning with a two-out RBI single but UT Martin exploded for six runs in its next at-bat. Cole Smith (double), Cameron Brady (two-run single), Rice (single) and Andrew Fernandez (two-run single) each collected RBI’s in the inning.
After Eastern Illinois snagged a run in the sixth, Jones kept the Panther bats quiet in the seventh – stranding the bases loaded. Rice then belted his second round-tripper of the game to extend the Skyhawk advantage out to 13-8.
Jones hurled a perfect frame in the eighth but Eastern Illinois rallied for six runs in the top of the ninth to briefly take a lead at 14-13. Facing an All-OVC first team closer from last season, UT Martin didn’t flinch. Alec Beaman reached on an error to lead off the frame before moving up 90 feet on a Rice sacrifice bunt. Beaman soon scampered home on back-to-back wild pitches to knot the score at 14-all. Will Smith then walked and stole second before the Panthers elected to intentionally walk Fernandez. Two batters later, Cole Smith delivered again with his third hit of the day and the third walk-off win of the season for the Skyhawks.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 8, MOREHEAD STATE 7
MOREHEAD, Ky. - University of Southern Indiana Baseball stopped a ninth inning Morehead State University rally to win 8-7 Friday evening in Morehead, Kentucky. USI is 12-14 overall and 3-2 in the OVC, while MSU goes to 15-12, 2-3 OVC.
The MSU Eagles plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the third to get the early 2-0 lead. USI junior catcher Logan Mock (Livermore, California) and junior rightfielder Adam Euler (Evansville, Indiana) evened the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth with back-to-back home runs to lead off the frame.
After a one-out walk to junior third baseman Ricardo Van Grieken (Venezuela), junior second baseman Land Crowden (Jackson, Missouri) blasted a two-run homer to right center to give the Screaming Eagles a 4-2 lead in the middle of the fourth.
Following a two-run MSU rally that tied the score, 4-4, in the bottom of the sixth, USI took the lead for good with a run in the seventh for a 5-4 lead. Euler would strike again with an RBI single to right, plating senior first baseman Tucker Ebest (Austin, Texas).
USI sealed the victory with a three-run eighth inning extending the margin to 8-4. Sophomore second baseman Caleb Niehaus (Newburgh, Indiana) made the score 6-5 with a run-scoring double down the left field line, while junior centerfielder Terrick Thompson-Allen (Sioux City, Iowa) finished the USI scoring with a two-run home run to right field for the 8-4 advantage.
The MSU Eagles would make a game of it in the final two innings. MSU cut the USI advantage to 8-5 with a tally in the eighth before threatening in the Screaming Eagles in the ninth.
After cutting the USI lead to 8-7, MSU loaded the bases with two out before the Screaming Eagles' junior right-hander Tyler Hutson (Villa Hills, Kentucky) shut door on the USI victory. The save was Hutson's team-high fourth of the year.
The victory on the mound went to junior right-hander Gavin Wilson (Lee's Summit, Missouri). Wilson (2-1) went 3.2 innings, allowing three runs on three hits in addition to striking out three batters.
USI junior right-hander Gavin Seebold (Jeffersonville, Indiana) started and got a no decision. Seebold gave up four runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out three in five innings.
SIUE 13, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 9
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - A nine-run eighth inning helped SIUE overcome an eight-run deficit and score a come-from-behind 13-9 win over Southeast Missouri Friday at Capaha Field. in the second game of a three-game Ohio Valley Conference baseball series.
The Cougars improved to 3-2 in OVC play and 9-18 overall. Southeast Missouri fell to 13-14 overall and 4-1 in the league.
Trailing 9-3, the Cougars sent 12 men to the plate in the eighth inning and nine of them scored. SIUE loaded the bases on a hit by pitch and two walks. Five hits, a fielder's choice and three errors later, the Cougars held a 12-9 lead. Lucas Spence, Ryan Niedzwiedz, Ethan Wiloughby, Gage Franck and John Stallcup all had run-scoring singles in the inning.
SIUE took advantage of a two-out SEMO error to tack on an insurance run in the top of the ninth.
Southeast Missouri built an 8-0 lead thanks to four runs in the first inning, two more in the second inning and two in the fourth inning on a two-run home run from Josh Cameron.
The Cougars got on the board in the sixth inning. Spence led off the inning with a single over first base, extending his hitting streak to 12 games. Chase Bloomer followed with an infield hit to the right side. Franck then lined a double down the left field line to drive home the first run.
Cameron pushed SEMO's lead to 9-1 with his second homer of the night in the sixth inning.
Drew Mize made it 9-2 when he drove in Daniel Gierer with a one-out, RBI-hit to center in the seventh inning. The Cougars then loaded the bases before Ethan Willoughby was hit by a pitch to make it 9-3.
Alex Rodriguez (2-2) earned the win with three innings of relief. He allowed a run and struck out a season-high six hitters.
Liam McKillop worked a scoreless eighth inning and struck out two. Duncan McLaughlin finished the game with a perfect ninth inning. He struck out one.
The Cougars finished with 12 hits. Spence, Bloomer, Franck and Mize all had two hits apiece. Franck drove in three runs and scored a run. Spence scored a team-high three runs and added an RBI.
TENNESSEE TECH 12, WESTERN ILLINOIS 2
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - An early explosion of offense backed by spectacular pitching was more than enough to lift the Tennessee Tech baseball team to a 12-2 victory over Western Illinois Friday evening, as the Golden Eagles clinched their first Ohio Valley Conference series of the season at Quillen Field and Bush Stadium at the Averitt Express Baseball Complex.
Patience was key for the Cookeville crew early on, as Tech (15-12, 3-2) used that approach to drop a six-spot on the visiting Leathernecks (6-17, 2-3) in the opening frame. Left fielder Austin Turner drew a five-pitch walk to set the table and tone for the night.
Second baseman Troy Baunsgard laid down a sacrifice bunt and reached safely anyway thanks to an error by the WIU infield. Catcher Hayden Gilliland loaded the bases after watching the next four offerings miss their mark.
With the bases juiced, first baseman Nicho Jordan provided the early fireworks for the home squad, ambushing the second pitch he saw for a mammoth long ball that cleared not only the wall in right field, but landed on Tech Softball Field. The grand slam, Jordan's fifth long ball of the year, provided an instant, 4-0 lead.
Still not done, shortstop Tanner Shiver continued the offensive onslaught by drawing his own walk. Designated hitter Preston Ford reached safely on a dropped fly ball in shallow center field, setting up right fielder Theo Bryant IV for his RBI double to left field three pitches later. Center fielder Jackson Green completed the scoring in the frame with a sacrifice fly ball down the right-field line.
Up 6-0, the Golden Eagles continued to roll offensively in the second, with Baunsgard opening the frame by banging a solo shot off the left-field foul pole, his fourth home run of the year. Two quick outs seemed to have the Leathernecks on their way to just a minor dent on the scoreboard, but Tech was far from done.
After Shiver drew his second walk of the contest, Ford ripped a double down the left-field line to put a pair in scoring position. Both came around to dent the dish two pitches later, with Bryant blasting a two-run double to left field.
Third baseman Eddie Garza made it three straight doubles for the home purple and gold, cracking the next pitch to left-center field. The sophomore's two-bagger drove in another run, elevating the Tech lead to 10-0.
The Golden Eagles tacked on one more run in the fourth, thanks to a lead-off triple by Ford that set things up. Green followed two batters later with his second sac fly of the ballgame down the right-field line.
Western Illinois finally got on the board in the sixth inning, using a long ball and RBI double to score a pair of Tech hurler Peyton Calitri. The Golden Eagle starter finished the day with yet another stellar showing, completing 6.0 innings with five punch-outs while scattering eight hits and allowing just the two runs. He earned his team-best fourth win of the year without issuing a single walk.
Freshman Juan Vargas took care of the seventh and eighth innings for the Golden Eagles, striking out three Leatherneck batters without allowing a hit. Closing out the final frame was fellow rookie Eli Huddleston gathering one strike out with just a single base runner allowed.
Prior to Huddleston entering the contest, Green cemented his name in the Tech record books, becoming the first Golden Eagle in program history to record three sacrifice flies in a single contest with his third flying out to center field.
Both Garza and Bryant turned in three-hit days, with Bryant driving in three runs along the way. Jordan tallied a pair of knocks while plating four. Green did not officially record an at-bat thanks to his record-breaking three sac flies and a pair of free passes.