Despite digging itself into an early 7-0 deficit, the Morehead State baseball team scored 11 runs on the strength of four home runs in the fifth inning en route to a 20-14 victory over Eastern Illinois in the Ohio Valley Conference series finale Sunday at Allen Field.
Morehead State, which belted a season-high six round-trippers, improved to 30-18 overall and 15-9 in the league. The 2015 club is now just one win shy of tying the 1993 squad for the most victories in a season. MSU won the series, 2-1, for its fifth straight conference series victory. The run total tied last Wednesday's effort for the most in a game this year. The Panthers fell to 11-31 overall and 7-17 in the OVC.
"Once again, we put ourselves in a bad spot with a poor pitching effort early," Head Coach Mike McGuire said. "But I told our guys we had eight innings left, and let's be patient at the plate and get quality at-bats throughout the lineup. We did that and were able to put up some crooked numbers (multi-run innings) on the board. We also got quality pitching on the back end from our bullpen."
Senior first baseman Kane Sweeney tied his season high with six RBI as he led off the fifth-inning outburst with a solo homer and crushed his fourth career grand slam later in the frame, his 10th and 11th blasts this year. Sweeney's reached-base streak increased to 25 games.
In fact, Morehead State's offense recorded the "cycle" in the fifth. Senior right fielder Brandon Rawe singled, catcher Chris Robinson doubled and homered, senior designated hitter Clayton Meyer also doubled, senior shortstop Robby Spencer tripled and senior Nick Newell added a round-tripper.
The offense came within one of its season-high for hits with 22. Eight of the nine batters recorded multi-hit days. Robinson was 4-for-6 with four RBI and three runs scored, while sophomore center fielder Ryan Kent extended his reached-base streak to a team-best 27 games with a three-run homer and five total RBI.
Rawe and freshman second baseman Braxton Morris recorded three-hit games, and Meyer added a pair of hits. He closed the week with 12 hits and 11 RBI.
Sophomore lefthander Cable Wright (3-1), who made his team-high 28th appearance and was one of six Eagle pitchers today, picked up the win after getting the final out in the fifth and tossing 2.1 innings of one-hit ball.
EIU reliever Andrew Grahn, who fell to 2-2, surrendered 10 hits and nine earned runs in a two-inning assignment. He was also one of six Panther pitchers in the contest.
EIU scored twice in the first, five times in the second and twice in the third to lead 9-4. The Eagles got four runs in the second and tied it 9-9 with a five-spot in the third before seeing the visitors pull ahead again 13-9.
Seven of the nine Eastern Illinois batters notched multi-hit efforts as the Panthers had 18 hits. Right fielder Caleb Howell, third baseman Brant Valach, who also nailed a home run, and catcher Hunter Morris picked up three hits. Second baseman Mitch Gasbarro led off a five-run second frame with a solo homer.
Morehead State, which is tied with SIU Edwardsville for second in the OVC standings at 15-9 but holds the tiebreaker over the Cougars, has the week off for semester final exams. The Eagles return to action on Friday at Jacksonville State for a 7 p.m. ET game.
