SUNDAY'S SCORES
Morehead State 3, @Western Illinois 1
@Tennessee Tech 7, Lindenwood 4
UT Martin 11, @Little Rock 6
@SIUE 6, Eastern Illinois 2
@Southern Indiana 5, Southeast Missouri 2
MOREHEAD STATE 3, WESTERN ILLINOIS 1
MACOMB, Ill. - Morehead State pounded out 10 hits for the third game in a row, and hung on to edge Western Illinois 3-1 in the series finale in Alfred D. Boyer Stadium in Macomb, Ill.
Morehead State (13-37/ 3-21 OVC) reliever Hunter Porter threw 4.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen, scattering three hits and allowing four walks in getting the win. He also struck out six.
Freshman Landon Waugh (1) picked up the save. He came in with no out and runners on first and second in the bottom of the ninth. He got a ground ball double play to third base and a strikeout to preserve the victory and his first career save.
The Eagles got ahead early. Caden Sheridan led off the game with a drive down the left field line, initially ruled a double but later changed to an error. Hunter Thomas slapped a single to left to put runners on the corners. Andy Cisneros scored Sheridan with an RBI sacrifice bunt to give MSU the early 1-0 lead.
MSU tacked on another run in the third. Sheridan led off, reaching on an infield error and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Thomas reached on an infield single, putting runners on the corners. Cisneros plated Sheridan with a sacrifice fly to center field to put the Eagles ahead 2-0.
Western Illinois (17-29/ 9-15 OVC) got on the board in the fourth inning. After a one-out walk, WIU third baseman Kyree Alexander doubled to right center, putting runners at second and third. After a walk to load the bases, first baseman Liam Bushey singled to left, scoring one run; MSU left fielder Davis Germann cut down Alexander trying to score. Porter came in out of the bullpen to relieve MSU starter Trevor Callahan and walked the first batter he faced to load the bases but got a strikeout to end the threat. Callahan threw 3.2 innings, allowing one earned run on six hits and three walks. He struck out three Leatherneck batters.
The Eagles got the run back in the sixth. First baseman Eli Kirkendoll led off with a double down the left field line. DH AJ Hacker moved him to third base with a sacrifice bunt. He scored when Caden Sheridan reached on a two-out infield error to put the Eagles up 3-1.
Porter wriggled out of a jam in the bottom of the sixth inning. Alexander led off with a single to right center, stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by Thomas. Porter got back-to-back strikeouts, then hit a batter and walked another to load the bases. He then induced a ground out to stem the WIU rally.
The Eagles threatened in the eighth. Hacker walked to lead off the inning. After two outs, Thomas walked to put runners on first and second. Cisneros singled up the middle and Hacker was thrown out at the plate to end the innings.
MSU again threatened in the ninth inning. JJ Dutton led off with a single, and Alex Kean doubled with one out to put runners on second and third. Eli Kirkendoll was intentionally walked to load the bases. A ground ball to force Dutton at the plate and a pop out ended the rally.
TENNESSEE TECH 7, LINDENWOOD 4
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - It was a spectacular way to celebrate both Mother's Day and Senior Day for the Tennessee Tech baseball team on Sunday, as the Golden Eagles won their sixth Ohio Valley Conference series of year with a 7-4 victory over Lindenwood at Quillen Field and Bush Stadium at the Averitt Express Baseball Complex.
The pitching staff continued to shine for the purple and gold (34-18, 16-8) while the offense delivered plenty of support and a historic performance from catcher Mack Whitcomb. The sophomore tied a program record by smashing three home runs in the contest, matching the effort of teammate and redshirt freshman shortstop Owen Lee at Middle Tennessee back on Mar. 11.
The Lions (26-26, 13-10) tried to set the tone early in the contest, taking an early 2-0 lead behind a long ball. After Tech miscue extended the first inning with two outs, Lindenwood first baseman Sam Grunberg sent a towering shot down the left field that just stayed inside the foul pole for a two-run home run.
The Golden Eagles immediately responded in the bottom half, scoring twice to tie the affair at 2-2. With the bases loaded, right fielder Jackson Green poked a nubber just past the pitcher for an infield knock to second base and the first Tech RBI of the day.
Second baseman Eddie Garza followed it up with a sacrifice fly ball to right field, driving in center fielder Nicho Jordan from third. Freshman hurler Logan Moller settled in from that point on, tossing up five consecutive zeroes through the sixth inning.
During that span, the Tech offense gave its starter a lead and some insurance, led by a power surge from Whitcomb. Jordan led off the bottom of the third with an infield single that glanced off the pitcher, turning things over to the Golden Eagle backstop.
Whitcomb delivered by crushing a laser down the left-field line on the first pitch he saw, clearing the wall for his 11th long ball of the season and a 4-2 Tech lead. Shortstop Preston Steele chalked up another marker for the Cookeville crew, smacking a flare to center field for an RBI and a 5-2 advantage.
In the fifth, Whitcomb went bridge again, blasting a moon shot down the left-field line on the first offering of the inning. Lindenwood finally broke through again in the seventh, picking up a weak infield single to third base with two outs.
Lion catcher Brodie Short pounced on the first pitch he saw from Moller for a two-run jack to right field, just clearing the outstretched glove of Green, who scaled the wall and narrowly robbed the dinger in must-watch fashion.
With the lead cut to two, Tech head coach Matt Bragga went to the bullpen and turned things over to sophomore closer Juan Vargas. The right-hander entered and picked up a strikeout on four pitches, snapping the momentum of the visitors.
Whitcomb then took the air out of Lindenwood's sails, completing history in the bottom of the seventh. The Mokena, Ill. native belted an absolute no-doubter down the left-field line with two outs in the frame, rocking his 13th round-tripper of the year to finish off a 3-for-3 day and give Tech a 7-4 advantage.
Vargas finished things off with strong work in the eighth and ninth, earning his eighth save of the season to make some history of his own. The Panama City, Panama native moved in sole possession of fifth place on the program's single-season saves list, trailing only legendary closers Seth Lucio and Ethan Roberts.
He completed 2.1 innings without allowing a hit, striking out three batters along the way. Moller (2-1) picked up his second win of the season after completing a season-high 6.2 innings of work, scattering five hits and four runs, including just two earned. The freshman also struck out three Lion batters.
Leading the offense, Whitcomb went 3-for-3 with four RBI, three runs scored, and joined a list of 13 other Golden Eagles who have piled up three pumps in a single game. The feat has been accomplished 15 times in program history, with Jason Hinchman, the OVC's all-time career home run leader, achieving the mark three times.
Ending the day 2-for-4 at the plate, Jordan scored two runs while stealing his 18th base of the season. He moved into a tie for 17th in school history for a single season while climbing to a tie for 23rd on the career charts with his 28th swipe.
Prior to the contest, 11 senior members of the Golden Eagle program were recognized for their hard work and dedication throughout their careers. Among those honored were Riley Black, Jackson Green, Jared Herzog, Houston High, Nicho Jordan, Ryan Lee, Preston Steele, Nick Vaccaro, Lucas Vega, Carter Vrabel, and Emery Wright.
UT MARTIN 11, LITTLE ROCK 6
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - .The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team rode a four-run first inning to a series clinching 11-6 win over Little Rock at Gary Hogan Field.
Every single Skyhawk reached base safely in the contest with Blaze Bell (double, two runs scored, walk, stolen base) leading the team in hits (three). Jalen Fithian (three stolen bases, two runs scored, RBI, two walks), Brody Capps (two RBIs, run scored), JT Popick (game-high three RBIs, double) and Cameron Greene (home run, three runs scored, walk, stolen base) had multi-hit games while Garner Anderson (run scored, two stolen bases), Arderrius Townsend (home run, three walks, two RBIs, two runs scored), Jonah Katsaboulas (RBI) and Tommy Koch (walk) added on to the UT Martin (20-30, 11-12 Ohio Valley Conference) attack.
Brandon King (2-1) threw 4.1 strong innings and struck out one batter. Jeb Bartle (2.2 innings pitched, one strikeout) and Kaleb Baskin (two innings pitched, no walks allowed) teamed up to close the game out of the bullpen.
The Skyhawks started the scoring on a double steal that brought home Fithian which was followed by a Capps single to plate Anderson. The UT Martin offense wouldn’t stop there, Townsend hit his team-best 12th long ball which brought the score to 4-0.
King scored two flyouts and a punchout in the home half to deny an early answer from the Trojans (19-29, 8-13 OVC). Bases were loaded for Little Rock in the second but that was no problem for King who induced a flyout to right field that ended the frame.
The righty King left two more Trojans stranded when he forced a pop out and two flyouts to keep the Skyhawk lead at four heading to the fourth inning. The Hancock, Miss. native retired Little Rock in order for another scoreless frame which gave way to his offense paying him back with two more runs in the top of the fifth. Popick drove in Bell on a single and Katsaboulas scored Townsend to make it a 6-0 ballgame.
The Trojans would get on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning and cut the UT Martin lead in half. Greene’s lead-off homer in a lefty-lefty matchup gave the Skyhawks the response they were looking for in the sixth. With the score 7-3 in the bottom part of the frame, Bartle got a clutch groundout to escape a bases loaded scenario.
Little Rock inched closer to the Skyhawk advantage in the seventh however UT Martin fired off a three-run eighth to bring its lead to five. Capps scored Greene on a single and Popick drove in two on a double with two outs that put the game out of reach.
The Trojans plated a run in the home half of the eighth but the Skyhawks answered in the top of the ninth from an RBI single by Fithian to make it 11-6. Baskin put the side down in order on two groundouts and a lineout for UT Martin’s second straight OVC series win.
SIUE 6, EASTERN ILLINOIS 2
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE baseball closed out its home season with a 6-2 win over Eastern Illinois Sunday to move back into a first-place tie in the Ohio Valley Conference.
The Cougars improved to 16-8 in OVC play with the win. Eastern Illinois is 14-7 in the league. Tennessee Tech also is 16-8. All three have a .667 winning percentage ahead of the last weekend of league play.
For the first time in the series, SIUE struck first, scoring a first-inning run. Mack Mitchell was hit by a pitch to lead off the first inning. He moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Daniel Gierer and scored on a one-out single by Chase Bloomer.
Eastern Illinois scored runs in the second and third innings to take a 2-1 lead before the Cougars went on top for good in the bottom of the third.
Gierer singled with two outs before Bloomer walked. Ryan Niedzwiedz looped a double into shallow center to score both runners to put the Cougars up 3-2.
The Cougars scored three more in the fifth on four hits. Mitchell and Joshua Heyder both drove home runs with hits. Niedzwiedz added a run with a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 6-2.
Kyle Athmer (3-1) threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings for the win. He allowed two hits and struck out one. Garrett Helsel started for the Cougars and gave up two runs in four innings. He struck out three.
Bloomer finished with two hits, two runs a walk and three stolen bases. Niedzwiedz was 1-3 with three RBIs.
SOUTHERN INDIANA 5, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 2
EVANSVILLE, Tenn. - University of Southern Indiana completed a three-game series sweep and clinched a spot in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship in two weeks with a 5-2 win over Southeast Missouri State University Sunday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI, which has won four-straight games, is 25-26 overall and 13-11 OVC, while SEMO is 27-24, 13-11 OVC.
With the sweep, USI moves into the fifth slot in the OVC standings with three games to play in the conference season. The Screaming Eagles finish the 2025 conference slate next weekend (May 15-17) at Lindenwood University.
The OVC Championship will be held May 21-24 in Marion, Illinois, at the Mountain Dew Ballpark.
The Eagles spotted the Redhawks a run in the second inning before getting the bats going in the third frame. USI junior first baseman Cole Kitchens tied the game 1-1 with an RBI double with one out.
USI jumped into the lead in the fourth inning when it posted three runs. Junior shortstop Clayton Slack knocked in USI's second tally of the game, while senior centerfielder Khi Holiday pushed the lead to 4-1 with a two-run single through the left side.
After SEMO pushed a run across in the top of the fifth, junior leftfielder Hunter Miller re-extended the lead to three runs, 5-2, with an RBI single to right. That would be the final run of the contest as the Eagles shut down the Redhawks in the final four innings to close out the victory.
For the game, Holiday led USI with two RBIs, while sophomore third baseman Parker Martin and junior catcher Micajah Wall had a team-best two hits in the win.
USI freshman Marshall Loch picked up the win after getting the Eagles out of a jam in the third inning. Loch (3-2) struck out the only batter he faced to get the win.
Senior right-hander Hiroyuki Yamada started and went the first 2.2 innings, allowing a run on three hits, while senior left-hander Mason Sweeney worked an inning and walked two.
Junior right-hander Blake Kimball posted his first save of the season in relief. Kimball, who made two relief appearances this weekend, set down the three batters he faced.
Prior to the game today, Yamada, Sweeney, and senior outfielder/designated hitter BJ Banyon were honored with Senior Day honors.