Box Score (HTML)
Box Score (PDF)
MOREHEAD, Ky. – It wasn’t easy, but Morehead State escaped from Allen Field with a 13-12 victory over IPFW in the series finale Sunday afternoon.
Morehead State led by six going into the final half-inning and allowed a five-run rally by the Mastodons to cut their advantage to one, before coach Jay Sorg turned to freshman
Garrick Whittle to cut down the IPFW rally. The rookie entered the game and forced Kurt Dudley to line out to center and then struck out Brett Clark on three straight pitches to earn the first save of his career.
MSU led the entire game and used three-run innings in both the first and second to jump out to a 6-0 lead after two.
Drew Lee drove in two runs with a single in the first and double in the second and
Andrew Deeds double home a run to lead the rallies.
A solo blast by
Cameron Flynn, his fourth homer of the season, made the score 7-2 after four before IPFW put together a four-run fifth to pull within one at 7-6. Kurt Dudley and A.J. Christenson each homered in the inning which effectively ended MSU starter Tyler Hieneman’s day. Hieneman gave up six runs, all earned, and struck out five in 4.2 innings of work
The Eagles stretched the lead back to three when Deeds drove in
Michael Fear and Flynn with a two-out double in the bottom of the fifth. Fear and Flynn had both earned walks to set the table for Deeds liner to the power alley in left center.
An IPFW error allowed another Eagle run to score in the bottom of the seventh and a Shaun VanDreissche solo home run to right in the top of the eighth made the score 13-7 halfway through the eighth.
J.D. Ashbrook then laced what turned out to be a crucial three-run homer down the left field line in the bottom of the eighth. Ashbrook’s team-leading ninth home run of the season drove in
Luke Bainer and
Travis Redmon after they had walked to lead off the inning.
Flynn struggled to put away the Mastodons in the ninth after recording the final two outs of the eighth with consecutive strikeouts. Flynn allowed a lead-off single to Christenson and then walked three of the next four batters to open the door for IPFW.
Jake Helvey then gave up consecutive hits and coupled with a
Luke Bainer error in right, the Eagles found themselves up only one with the tying run on first. That’s when Whittle entered and quickly ended any hopes for a Mastodon comeback.
Josh Schneider picked up the win in relief, pitching 2.2 innings in the middle of the contest and allowing just one run.
Bainer went 3-4 to lead five other Eagles with multiple hits. Ashbrook and Deeds each drove in 3 runs, while Flynn and Lee each drove in a pair.
The Eagles return to action on Tuesday when they host Indiana University at 3 p.m. at Allen Field.