Ohio Valley Conference

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Another successful day at the plate and some timely defense was enough for the Tennessee Tech baseball team to pull off a midweek series sweep of visiting USC Upstate on Wednesday, outlasting a lengthy weather delay and comeback bid to earn an 8-6 win at Quillen Field and Bush Stadium at the Averitt Express Baseball Complex.

The Spartans (21-21) took the first lead of the game, scoring an unearned run in the first inning. The visitors doubled down with a lead-off home run to left field in the second and made it a 3-0 ball game in the top of the fourth with another unearned marker.

The Golden Eagles (26-16) answered back in the bottom half of the inning, as center fielder Jackson Green and designated hitter Mack Whitcomb were plunked by back-to-back pitches to open the frame. The pair advanced on a ground ball out to first base before the Spartans picked up out number two.

Needing a bit of a rally, second baseman Eddie Garza came through with an RBI knock to left field, plating Jordan for the first run of the ball game. The Upstate left fielder booted the ball as well, allowing it to travel to the wall and a second run to score on the error.

In the sixth, the Cookeville crew squared the affair behind the power of first baseman Nicho Jordan. The senior slugger smashed a solo bomb to right-center field with one out, tying the game at 3-3 with his seventh round-tripper of the season.

Tech moved in front for the first time of the day in the seventh, rallying again with two outs. Left fielder Landon Smelser led off the inning with a walk and, two outs later, Whitcomb ripped an infield single to shortstop. The two moved into scoring position thanks to a wild pitch before catcher Riley Black loaded the bags with a seven-pitch walk.

Once again, Jordan delivered when the Golden Eagles needed it most. Working a 2-1 count, the veteran ripped a double down the right-field line, clearing the bases in the process for three more RBI and a 6-3 Tech lead.

Heading to the bottom of the eighth, the purple and gold continued the attack by loading the bases to open the frame. With third baseman Preston Steele battling at the dish to a 1-1 count, the contest entered a weather delay due to lightning detected in the area.

The delay lasted two hours and 18 minutes, bringing the total game time to five hours and 32 minutes for the day. With play back on, Steele immediately fired the first offering he saw to right field for a sacrifice fly and a big insurance run. Green followed with an RBI single to center field, providing an 8-3 advantage.

Upstate battled to the bitter end, plating three runs with just one out and the bases still loaded in the top of the ninth. Right-hander Jaxon Pridgen provided just what the doctor ordered, inducing a grounder for his defense to turn a game-ending, 6-4-3 double play.

After completing 1.2 innings of perfect relief from the bullpen across the fourth and fifth frames, freshman Carter Casabella picked up his third win of the season while striking out a pair. Lawson Stricklin provided 2.0 frames of scoreless work prior to the delay, also fanning two.

Sophomore Drew Mattox punched out a team-high four batters while tossing 2.0 innings as the game's starter, allowing just one earned run. Pridgen took care of the final two outs of the day, earning his second save of the year.

Jordan led the Golden Eagle offense, driving in four with a pair of hits. Whitcomb, Garza, and Smelser each tallied two hits apiece, with Whitcomb leading the way with two runs scored.

EASTERN ILLINOIS 11, ILLINOIS WESLEYAN 1
CHARLESTON, Ill. - The Eastern Illinois baseball team (21-17, 9-5 OVC) picked up their second run-rule victory of the midweek with a 11-1 win over Illinois Wesleyan at Coaches Stadium on Wednesday afternoon. The Panthers used a seven-run seventh inning to secure their sixth straight win.

All 11 of EIU's runs were earned, and just like in Tuesday's win, they out-hit their opponent 12 to 4. Eleven different Panthers recorded hits in the game, led by Jake Ferguson with a 2-3 outing.

Four Eastern batters posted multiple RBIs, with Danny Infante driving in a team-high three runs.

Five Panthers saw action on the mound, combining to allow zero earned runs with seven strikeouts. Eli Cartwright (2-0) got the win after throwing one and a third scoreless innings in relief with three strikeouts.

Following a scoreless first inning, EIU broke into the scoring column with a Colin Horneman double off the left field wall that scored Jake Ferguson, who had been walked to lead off the inning.

Wesleyan responded in the top of the third with Gage Wolf scoring on a Matt Hudik RBI groundout that would have ended the inning if not for a fielding error earlier in the frame.

The score remained tied entering the bottom of the fourth, but after Eastern loaded the bases with no outs, Colin Horneman broke the stalemate with an RBI walk that brought in Jake Ferguson.

Pierce Bauerle then scored on a Jake Ottensmeier fielder's choice before Ethan Rossi came home on a Chris Worcester sacrifice fly to make the score 4-1.

The two teams combined for just one hit over the next two and a half innings before EIU exploded for seven runs in the seventh.

After Chris Worcester was hit by a pitch and Brett Stanley was walked to begin the at-bat, Joey Hagen delivered an RBI double to get the winning inning started.

With runners now on second and third, Tyler Castro stepped to the plate and tacked on two more runs with a two RBI single to right field.

A Jake Ferguson base hit put runners on the corners for Danny Infante, who drove a ball to the gap in deep right center that caused trouble for the IWU defense, as the Titan center and right fielders collided in pursuit of the out.

The ball then found grass and rolled to the wall as Infante galloped all the way around the basepath for an in the park three-run home run that extended the lead to 10-1.

After back-to-back singles from Luke Melton and Jake Ottensmeier, and a two-out free pass for Sam Wiese, Joey Hagen was walked on four pitches to bring in the winning run.

#5 ARKANSAS 4, LITTLE ROCK 0
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Little Rock baseball coach Chris Curry was disappointed in his team's pitching and defense in a 10-0 loss to No. 5 Arkansas Tuesday night. On Wednesday, he was pleased with the improvement in a 4-0 loss to the in-state rival Razorbacks (36-7).

Arkansas, with one of the more potent offenses in college baseball only led 2-0 after six innings.

Senior Noah Burkey took the loss, but had a strong outing giving up just 2 runs on 2 hits in 2.2 innings.  In all, five Trojans took the mound.

Little Rock collected six hits, including two apiece by Ty Rhoades and Jayce Blalock.

MARSHALL 32, MOREHEAD STATE 15
MOREHEAD, Ky. - Morehead State and Marshall combined to score 11 runs in the first inning Wednesday night at Allen Field at Prefontaine Park, and barely slowed down as the Herd outlasted the Eagles 32-15.

Morehead State (12-27/ 2-13 OVC) pounded out 15 hits, including six home runs, but the Eagles couldn't match the offense of Marshall, who pounded out 33 hits.

Marshall's Blaine Albright (1-0) got the win. MSU's Hunter Porter (0-3) took the loss.

LINDENWOOD 14, ROCKHURST 5
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood baseball team (20-21) defeat Rockhurst (20-20) by a score of 14-5 on Wednesday night from Lou Brock Sports Complex

The Lions put a rally together with two outs in the bottom of the first. Filip Sarota and Bryson Arnette had back-to-back singles, and the pair pulled off a double steal, putting the Black and Gold up 1-0. One batter later, Tanner Simpson kept his hot bat going, driving in Arnette making the score 2-0.

Lindenwood added one more in the second when Evan Funkhouser doubled home Jack Meyer, extending the lead to 3-0. The Lions put together three-straight hits in the third, capped off by a Brody Barker RBI single, growing the lead to 4-0. After a sac fly from Funkhouser put the Lions up 5-0, Mitch Cummins drove home another run as the Black and Gold led 6-0 after three.

Rockhurst plated one in the fourth, and a two-run homer in the fifth cut the deficit to 6-3. Lindenwood responded with one in the bottom half of the inning with a single from Sarota that brought home Cummins. In the sixth, a big two out hit from Barker brought home Tyler Ellis, pushing the score to 8-3. The Hawks plated one in the seventh, and one in the eighth,  closing the gap 8-5.

Barker continued his career night with a two-RBI single in the eighth, making the score 10-5. A couple batters later, Tyler Thompson tripled home three, giving the Lions a 13-5 lead, and a sac fly from Sarota put Lindenwood up nine.

SOUTHERN INDIANA 10, BELLARMINE 9
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana senior centerfielder Khi Holiday singled in the game-winner in the ninth to cap a comeback victory over Bellarmine University, 10-9, Wednesday evening at the USI Baseball Field. USI is 19-22 overall, while Bellarmine is 10-31.
 
Trailing 9-6 going into the bottom of the ninth, junior first baseman Patrick McLellan singled to lead off the rally before singles by junior catcher Charlie Marisca and sophomore rightfielder Cameron Boyd to load the bases. Junior leftfielder Hunter Miller drew an RBI walk to get the scoring going to make the score, 9-7.
 
Junior pinch hitter Kannon Coakley drove in senior pinch runner BJ Banyon to make the score, 9-8, while junior pinch hitter Micajah Wall tied the game, 9-9, with a sacrifice fly and set the stage for Holiday.
 
Holiday sent a high hopper over the pitcher and beat the throw as Miller scored the game-winning run for USI's 10-9 victory.
 
The four-run rally in the ninth was the fourth time USI had to battle back to take the lead in the game.
 
Trailing 2-0 in the second, Boyd hit the first of his two home runs in the contest to knot the game at 2-2. He would follow with a three-run blast in the fifth to give USI the lead 5-4. The home runs were Boyd's third and fourth of the season.
 
Boyd finished the game with a team-best four-for-five at the plate with three runs scored and five RBIs. The four hits, two home runs, and five RBIs were career-highs for Boyd.
 
Bellarmine scored two in the seventh and three in the eighth to lead, 9-6, and set the stage for USI in the ninth.
 
On the mound, senior right-hander Hiroyuki Yamada picked up his first win of the season in relief. Yamada threw one inning, allowing a walk and striking out one.
 
USI freshman right-hander Colin Wolfe started and received a no-decision. The freshman allowed two unearned runs on a hit and three walks over three innings of work.