SATURDAY'S SCORES
@Lindenwood 2, UT Martin 0
@Morehead State 8-10, Eastern Illinois 7-14
SIUE 18-11, @Tennessee Tech 12-12
@Southern Indiana 10, Little Rock 0
@Southeast Missouri 9, Western Illinois 5
LINDENWOOD 2, UT MARTIN 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood baseball team (14-14, 4-2 OVC) picked up a series sweep of UT Martin (10-18, 2-4 OVC) after defeating the Skyhawks 2-0 on Saturday afternoon from Lou Brock Sports Complex
Lindenwood put the first two runners on in the first and Sam Grunberg came through later in the inning with a clutch two-out hit to score Kam Edwards putting the Lions up 1-0.
Eli Brown kept the Skyhawks bats at bay, allowing just three hits through the first six innings, while needing just 70 pitches to get there. The Lions added another run with some more two out hitting in the bottom half of the inning. Bryson Arnette brought home Jake Radosevich, putting the Black & Gold up 2-0.
Brown did not allow a hit in the final three innings, limiting UT Martin to just three on the day. He tossed a complete game shutout, allowing just three hits on 104 pitches to pick up the win and earn the series sweep
MOREHEAD STATE 8-10, EASTERN ILLINOIS 7-14
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Fans got their money's worth at Allen Field on Saturday, as the Eastern Illinois baseball team (11-14, 4-2 OVC) split a pair of extra inning contests in their doubleheader at Morehead State (9-16, 1-5 OVC) to secure their second conference series win of the season.
Eastern Illinois 7, Morehead State 8
The day's opening game was a back-and-forth affair, with neither team gaining more than a two-run advantage throughout the contest's ten innings. Morehead State ultimately prevailed with a walk-off two-run homer to even the series.
The EIU bats scored seven runs on eight hits and one MSU error. The offense was headlined by Brett Stanley, who went 4-5 with a home run, double, and five RBIs. Mike O'Conor also posted a multi-hit outing with a 2-4, one RBI performance.
Five Panther pitchers made appearances in the ballgame, including starter Tyler Kapraun who finished his day with a line of four earned runs on five hits with season-high eight strikeouts through 5.2 innings.
After the first nine batters of the game were retired, Morehead State struck first with an Alex Kean leadoff double followed by an Eli Kirkendoll two-run homer in the bottom of the second.
The teams combined for just one hit and no runs in the third and fourth innings before Brett Stanley recorded EIU's first knock of the game with a single up the middle in the fifth. The hit was sandwiched between a hit by pitch and walk to load the bases with one out, but a pop out and groundout left all three runners stranded.
Eastern filled up the basepath again in the sixth and were able to scratch their first run across on a ground ball to third that resulted in a double play. However, after Cade Zalewski was hit by a pitch for the second time, Brett Stanely blasted a ball over Allen Field's right field netting for a three-run home run, pushing the Panthers ahead 4-2.
The Eagles wasted no time responding, though, and with one on and two out in the bottom of the sixth, Kean took one deep to right center to tie the game.
Not to be outdone, the Panthers answered right back in the seventh with a pair of sacrifice RBIs from Tyler Castro and Mike O'Conor to recapture their two-run advantage.
Morehead State cut the lead in half with a Caden Sheridan solo home run in the bottom of the seventh before tying the game back up with a Kean RBI double with two outs in the eighth.
After neither team could find the winning run in the ninth, the contest went to extra innings, where EIU retook the lead with a Brett Stanley RBI single that scored Jake Ferguson, who had reached base for the ninth consecutive game with a leadoff double.
However, the Panthers were unable to score any insurance runs, and after JJ Dutton reached base with a leadoff single in the bottom of the inning, Hunter Thomas homered to left center to give MSU the walk-off victory.
The Panthers had to overcome a furious rally from the Eagles in the series finale, as Morehead State erased an eight-run eighth inning deficit to send the game to extras before a Tyler Castro three-run homer saved the series for Eastern Illinois.
The victory moved EIU's all-time record against the Eagles to 62-27 and secured their first series win against Morehead since 2017. It marks just the fifth time since 2014 that MSU has lost an OVC series at Allen Field.
The Eastern offense scored 14 runs, including 13 earned, on 20 hits and one error. It was the Panthers' second 20+ hit performance of the series.
Mike O'Conor led the attack, going 4-6 with four runs scored, a home run, one double, and three RBIs. Ethan Rossi also posted four hits with a homer and two RBIs.
Meanwhile, Jake Ferguson went 3-5 with three RBIs, extending his reached-base streak to 10 games.
Tyler Castro, Brett Stanley, and Luke Melton also recorded multi-hit outings with two knocks apiece.
Christian Carew (1-1) picked up his first win of the season after giving up no runs and no hits through the game's final inning and a third.
Starting pitcher Anthony Solis recorded 10 strikeouts, which is the most by an EIU pitcher in a single game this season. Solis allowed just two runs on two hits through the game's first seven innings.
After both squads went three up, three down in their first two at-bats, Eli Hill got the scoring started with a leadoff home run in the third inning. It was Hill's second home run of the series and third of the season.
The Eagles found a breakthrough with a solo home run of their own in the bottom of the frame, as Chase Edmonds tied the score with deep shot to right field.
Mike O'Conor reached on a leadoff single in the fourth before being brought around to score on an Ethan Rossi RBI double to regain the lead, but MSU kept pace with an Alex Kean solo home run in their half of the inning.
After a scoreless fifth, EIU went back in front with an O'Conor leadoff homer in the sixth before taking full control with a five-run seventh inning.
The big inning got started with a Luke Melton RBI triple that plated Eli Hill, who had initially reached on a throwing error. It was Eastern's first triple of the season.
Chris Worcester brought home Melton with a base hit, and after Tyler Castro singled to put runners on first and second, Mike O'Conor kept things rolling with two RBI double.
After advancing to third on a Zak Goodwin base hit, O'Conor would score the final run of the frame on a Jake Ferguson RBI groundout to make the score 8-2 in favor of the Panthers.
Eastern tacked on two more runs in the top of the eighth with a Hill leadoff walk followed by an Ethan Rossi long ball to center field, which extended EIU's lead to eight.
However, MSU refused to concede the series quietly and staged a furious rally beginning with a five-run bottom of the eighth that featured a pair of two-run homers from Caden Sheridan and Hunter Thomas.
Then, after EIU left a man stranded in the top of the ninth, Morehead stayed hot with a Griffin Olson two-run homer to pull within one. With two out and nobody on later in the inning, JJ Dutton singled to keep the inning alive before an Andy Cisneros double off the right field netting allowed pinch runner Austyn Peak to score from first to tie to the game.
Cisneros moved to third on a wild pitch, but was unable to advance the final 90 feet as Christian Carew got the final out of the inning.
In the tenth, Ethan Rossi reached on a leadoff single before Chris Worcester was intentionally walked, setting the stage for Tyler Castro who promptly launched a ball to right center for a go-ahead three-run homer. It was Castro's second home run of the weekend.
The Panthers added one more insurance run in the inning with a Jake Ferguson RBI single before Christian Carew allowed no hits and no runs in the bottom half of the frame to secure the win and series for Eastern.
SIUE 18-11, TENNESSEE TECH 12-12
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - SIUE Baseball split the double header with Tennessee Tech Saturday, dominating the Eagles 18-12 in game one, but falling in the final inning 12-11 during game two.
The Cougars are now 12-14 overall and 5-1 in OVC play. Tennessee Tech is now 19 - 10 overall and 4-2 in OVC.
The Cougars scored three times in the third inning to tie up the game. Kyle Ratliff singled through the left side, before Joshya Heyder hit a home run to left center giving him two RBIs. Lane Crowden later walked and advanced to third after a double from John Stallcup. Daniel Giere grounded out giving him the RBI and bringing Crowden home.
Ryan Niedzwiedz and Ratliff both hit home runs in left field during the fourth inning to maintain the Cougar's lead. This marked Ratliff's sixth home run of the season.
Niedzwiedz hit a second home run in the seventh inning giving him three RBIs.
TTU responded with two runs in the seventh after Nicho Jordan doubled to left center. However, this wouldn't be enough to catch the Cougars.
Alex Rodriguez relieved Garrett Helsel in the second inning and worked 3.1 innings only letting up five hits and two runs and two strike outs. Rodriguez improves to 2-1 on the season.
The Cougars kept their lead for majority of game two but fell short in the final inning.
Bloomer hit his team leading ninth home run of the season in the third inning, bringing in three runs.
Mack Mitchell had five at bats resulting in one home run, three RBIs and two hits. Heyder had four at bats giving him three hits, three RBIs and one home run.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 10, LITTLE ROCK 0
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana junior right-hander Blake Kimball and junior leftfielder Hunter Miller led the Screaming Eagles to a 10-0 victory Saturday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI is 11-15 overall and 3-2 in the OVC after the second game of the series, while Little Rock goes to 10-17, 1-4 in the OVC.
Kimball (3-3) was dominating on the mound and posted his third win of the season. The junior right-hander threw eight scoreless innings, allowing three hits and two walks, while tying a season-high five strikeouts. The eight-shutout innings were the most by a USI starter since 2019 when Sammy Barnett threw a nine-inning shutout on the road at McKendree University.
Miller, who was a late substitution into the starting lineup due to an injury to sophomore second baseman Anthony Umbach, went five-for-five with two runs scored and two RBIs.
The Eagles took command of the game early with a five-run second inning to lead, 5-0. Junior catcher Micajah Wall and senior centerfielder Khi Holiday highlighted the frame with a two-run double and a two-run single, respectively.
The score would remain 5-0 until the seventh when Miller scored on an RBI double by sophomore rightfielder Cameron Boyd to give USI a 6-0 advantage. USI pushed the lead to 7-0 when Miller struck again, driving in junior first baseman Kannon Coakley with an RBI single.
USI finished the scoring in the eighth, posting three more runs, two coming on RBI singles by sophomore second baseman Parker Martin and Miller for the 10-0 final score.
At the plate as a team, USI had six players with two or more hits. Junior designed hitter Cole Kitchens' single in the second inning increased his hitting streak to a team-best 15 games.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 9, WESTERN ILLINOIS 5
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri Baseball (17-11, 4-2 OVC) completed the three-game sweep of Western Illinois (6-17, 1-5 OVC) with a 9-5 victory on Saturday evening from Capaha Field.
The Redhawks came back to win game three after falling behind 5-0 after the top of the third inning. SEMO got three runs back in the home half with a three-run home run from right fielder Cole Warehime. Warehime's blast marked his sixth of the season as he finished 2-5 at the plate with three RBIs.
Trailing 5-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning, an RBI single to center field by Michael Mugan made it 5-4 Leathernecks. Mugan finished the day 4-5 at the plate with two RBIs and a run scored.
The Redhawks pulled away in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to a go-ahead, three run home run from catcher Shea McGahan. McGahan came up following back-to-back walks to Carson Schrack and Ty Stauss and belted his second home run of the season to left center field off LHP Alex Esker.
Mugan's second RBI single of the game came two batters later as he scored Caleb Champion after a walk to make it 8-4 SEMO after the fifth inning.
First baseman Bryce Cannon roped an RBI single in the eighth inning for the ninth and final run of the day for the Redhawks to make it 9-5.
The SEMO bullpen shut down the Leathernecks after the five run third inning as RHP Eddie White (2-0) pitched 3.1 innings while only allowing a hit. He did not allow a run and struck out one hitter en route to his second victory of 2025.
RHP Brian Strange picked up his second save of the season pitching the final 2.1 innings, entering the ball game with a three-run lead. He struck out four hitters to seal the deal.