Ohio Valley Conference

A Drew Lee three-run blast to straightaway center gave MSU a 9-8 lead in the bottom of the seventh. It was Lee's team leading sixth home run of the season. Eric Bainer led off the inning with a single to right and moved over to third when Travis Redmon was walked and J.D. Ashbrook was hit by a pitch. Daniel Pugh then drove in Bainer with a sacrifice fly to center before Lee belted his second homer in as many games, driving in his eighth, ninth and tenth RBIs of the series.

The Bulls (3-4) tied the game in the top of the eighth when Tom Murphy took Cameron Flynn deep, a solo shot to center.

Buffalo then got four runs off of Cody Gibson in the top of the tenth after Gibson had pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth. Adam Skoniecki knocked a two-run double into the left field corner and Brad Cochrane singled past a drawn in infield to plate two more runs.

UB reliever Brian Pullyblank then got MSU in order in the bottom of the tenth to close the game.

Buffalo had jumped out to an early lead with a four-run second. The Eagles answered back via a two-run home run from J.D. Ashbrook in the third. It was Ashbrook's fifth long ball of the season and second of the weekend.

The Bulls got three more runs off of MSU starter Tyler Hieneman in the top half of the fourth to build its lead to five and then got a run in the top of the sixth to make it 8-2.

Michael Bottoms started the MSU (5-9) comeback with his first homer of the season, a three-run shot to left field. Ashbrook and Pugh had singled to set the table for the blast. The homer capped a week in which Bottoms batted .478 and drove in seven runs.

Junior Corey Harness (0-1) made his first start of the season for the Redhawks and his first appearance on the mound in eight games. He gave up a single run in each of the first three innings, finishing with two strikeouts and a walk in 2 2/3 innings.

The Redhawks cycled through five more pitchers after Harness left in the third, including Brad LaBruyere, Nick Thomas, Jacob Wente, John Salazar, and Kirk Boeller. Each pitcher gave up at least one earned run, except Wente and Boeller. Wente pitched two innings and only allowed one hit. Boeller entered the game in the ninth inning and struck out the side, while only giving up one hit.

In one of its best scoring opportunities, Southeast threatened to score in the sixth inning after loading up the bases. Sophomore Kenton Parmley and junior Casey Jones each singled in the inning, but the Redhawks could not capitalize on the opportunity and remained scoreless.

Michigan State scored in five of the nine innings, including two innings with three runs in each. The Spartans put up 17 hits and were aggressive on the bases after getting on, as they stole a total of three bases.

Tony Bucciferro (1-2) pitched the complete game shutout in his first win of the season.

Junior Michael Adamson and Jones led the team in hitting today with two hits apiece. Jones had a pair of singles, while Adamson hit a single and a double.

With the game tied 3-3, UAB's Ryan Ussery led off the bottom of the ninth with a double down the left field and moved to third base on a sac bunt. Pinch hitter Devin Hamilton played the hero with a single to left.
 
Matt Miller suffered the loss for the Panthers (1-8). He has been tagged with the loss in all three walk-off defeats. Five of EIU's eight losses have come in one-run games.
 
Eastern took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the sixth but UAB (6-3) scored three times in the inning thanks to two hits, two sacrifices, a walk and an EIU error. The Panthers were able to tie the game in the top of the seventh on an RBI groundout from Ryan Dineen.
 
Thoma homered to leadoff the fourth inning, his first long ball of the season and ninth career, and finished the day 2-for-4. Eastern were limited to five hits. Alex Gee and Priessman did draw a pair of walks each.

McNeil worked five-plus innings, giving up three runs (one earned) on three singles and three walks. He went out for the sixth inning but was unable to record an out before giving way to the EIU bullpen. He was charged with an error on a sacrifice bunt by the final batter he faced.
 
McNeil fanned five in his longest outing of the season, striking out the side in the second inning. He did not give up a hit until the fourth inning and then picked that runner off at first base.
 
But an inning-opening walk to the No. 9 hitter ignited UAB's three-run rally in the sixth. Leadoff man Jamal Austin followed with a base hit. The Blazers opted to move both runners in scoring position with a bunt and it turned into a bases loaded situation when McNeil could not handle the sacrifice cleanly.
 
Rich Ruff took over on the mound and retired the No. 3 and 4 hitters in the UAB lineup. But runs scored on both outs - a sacrifice fly to right and a ground ball to first base that led to a fielder's choice at second. The Blazers then took the lead on a two-out single.
 
Miller kept EIU in the game by recording the final out of the sixth inning with the bases loaded. The reliever also picked off a runner at first base in the seventh and struck out a pair over 2 2/3 innings.
 
Eastern stranded the potential go-ahead run at third base in the eighth inning. UAB reliever Nick Graffeo (1-1) then struck out the side in the ninth.
 
Priessman led off the seventh with a walk and took second on a wild pitch. Rowe moved his classmate to third with a sacrifice bunt and Dineen plated the game-tying run with a ground ball to the right side.
 
Richie Derbak scored EIU's second run of the day in the sixth inning when he walked, went first to third on a base hit by Cam Strang and scampered home on a wild pitch.
 
The Panthers were unable to capitalize on a scoring opportunity in the fifth inning. Gerik Wallsten led off with a single and Priessman followed with a walk. Rowe advanced both runners with a sac bunt. A comebacker off the bat of Dineen led to Wallsten getting tagged out between third and home. UAB starter Beau Pender then struck out Zach Borenstein to end the inning. Pender recorded the final out of an inning via the strikeout in four of the six frames he worked.

Junior Jayson Langfels and freshman Matt Phipps both collected two hits on the day to pace the Colonel offense, while Langfels and junior Richie Allen drove in a pair of runs apiece.

Jesse Harmon (0-2) picked up the loss for PC (2-9), working 6.1 innings and allowing six runs on five hits.

Mack Hite led the Blue Hose offense with a 2-for-4 performance and two RBI.

The Colonels (4-3) were held without a base runner through three innings, but exploded for four runs in the top of the fourth. Sophomore Richie Rodriguez walked to begin the inning and advanced to second a on a bunt by junior Bryce Labhart. Langfels then laced a single into left field that scored Rodriguez. Langfels advanced to second on the throw home and then went to third on a failed pickoff attempt. After senior Anthony Ottrando walked, sophomore Michael Garcia doubled down the left field line to score Langfels. Allen then punched a single through the right side to plate Ottrando and Garcia and make the score 4-0.

The Blue Hose got two runs back in the bottom of the fifth when Hite smacked a bases-loaded single that cut the Colonels' lead to 4-2; however, EKU matched those two runs in the top of the seventh as Labhart plated Phipps with an RBI fielder's choice and Ottrando drove in Labhart with a single to left center.

EKU added another in the top of the eighth as Langfels scored freshman Kyle England with a single to third base that pushed the Colonels' advantage to 7-2.

PC threatened in the bottom of that inning as the Blue Hose put runners on first and second with one out, but Rodriguez made a diving catch at shortstop that led to an inning-ending double play.

The Colonels then added insurance runs in the ninth as junior Ryan Faidley and sophomore A.J. Jamison blasted back-to-back solo home runs. Faidley's home run was the first of his career.

Aaron Preston blasted a two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth to close the gap, but junior Ryne Purcell was able to get out of the inning and end the game.

Senior Kevin Elwell (1-1) scattered nine hits and had a pair of strikeouts in five innings to earn his first win of the season. Alex Jones retired the side in the ninth inning to earn his second consecutive save. Chad Edwards gave up seven runs and eight hits in 4 1/3 innings to suffer the loss for the Blue Raiders.

Middle Tennessee took a 2-0 lead in the second inning after Ryan Ford and Tyler Burnett each drove in a run, but the Gamecocks took the lead for good in the home half of the inning.

Jake Sharrock led off with a double and Adamson followed with his second home run of the season to tie the game at 2-2. Bert Smith followed with a RBI hit, while Andrew Edge drove in two runs with a single up the middle as the Gamecocks took a 5-2 lead.

Jax State pushed the lead to 7-2 in the fifth inning after Adamson had a RBI triple to right center and Sam Eberle followed with a RBI single to left field for the Gamecocks.

Middle Tennessee scored three runs in the sixth inning, thanks to a pair of JSU errors, but the Gamecocks added two runs after Smith had a RBI single and later came around to score on a wild pitch.

Burnett led off the eighth with a solo home run for MTSU for the final margin.

Cunningham, Edge and Adamson each finished with three hits as the Gamecocks had 11 hits in the game.

The Breds (4-6) got on the board in the first inning as Wes Cunningham reached on a fielding error by the second baseman.  Jason Laws followed by tucking a double just inside the bag at first.  The throw from right field was late to second and skipped away, allowing Cunningham to score the game's first run.

The Demons (9-2) took advantage of a misplay in the outfield to push across an unearned run of their own in the third.  With one out, Chris Hebert singled down the right-field line and went all the to third when the ball skipped by the right fielder.  Joshual Gardiner followed with an RBI-single through the right side.

A pair of walks to start the fourth helped NSU gain the lead.  Trent Grondin and Chase Lyles walked before being sacrificed to second and third.  After a strikeout for the second out, Colin Bear delivered a two-run single up the middle.

The Demons took advantage of three MSU errors in the fifth to help push across four more runs.  NSU got RBI singles from Oscar Garcia and Grondin before Adam Roy's infield single was thrown down the right-field line, allowing two runs to score.

MSU put together one last charge in the eighth as Zach Noonan singled to center, Cory Hodskins singled to left and Tyler Monkman walked to load the bases with no outs.  Kyle Tiernan drew a full-count walk to plate one run, but the only other run that scored came on a failed pickoff attempt at third.

The Demons responded by pushing across six more runs in the bottom of the inning.

Ryan Zimmerman (1-0) picked up the victory after holding the Breds to just one hit and one unearned run, while striking out eight over six innings.  Dan Huff (0-2) took the loss after allowing seven runs, four earned, on eight hits over 4.2 innings.

Tech got a run back in the bottom of the fifth inning after Casanova Donaldson reach on a dropped-third-strike, then stole second before eventually scoring on a ground ball. But Bradley would pull ahead 6-1 after scoring two more runs in the top of the sixth to seal the victory.

Junior Jason Van Skike (2-0) started the game for ISU, earning the victory by tossing seven innings on the mound. Van Skike scattered seven hits and four runs while striking out six batters.

The Sycamores (6-4) fell behind early on Sunday, with UT Martin (7-4) tallying a single run in the top of the first inning. Strausborger quickly tied the game up with his first home run of the season in the bottom of the frame.

The Sycamores jumped ahead, 2-1, in the third inning on an RBI groundout from sophomore Kyle Burnam. The lead did not hold for long, however, as the Skyhawks tallied a pair of runs in the top of the fourth inning to take a 3-2 lead.

The Sycamores went ahead for good in the bottom of the frame, scoring four runs in the inning. After senior Tyler Graham was hit by a pitch, freshman Robby Ort doubled to left-center field to bring Graham home and tie the score at 3-3. Liniger notched his first home run of the day when he came to the plate next, sending a pitch into the trees behind the left-center field wall. The fourth run of the inning was scored by junior Levi Ferguson, who singled to reach base, stole both second and third base and scored on a sacrifice fly from Strausborger.

Liniger's second two-run home run of the day came in the following inning, putting the Sycamores in front 8-3. ISU would tack on a pair of runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to ensure the weekend series victory.

AUSTIN PEAY 10, SIU EDWARDSVILLE 9
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Austin Peay State University's baseball team completed a sweep of the Riverview Inn Invitational with a 10-9 come-from-behind victory against SIU Edwardsville, Sunday at Raymond C. Hand Park.

Austin Peay (8-3) won the three-day tournament with a 3-0 record, followed by Milwaukee (3-1), SIU Edwardsville (1-3) and Dayton (0-3).

The Govs had to rally to clinch the tournament's final game, falling behind by a 8-3 margin through five and a half innings. Austin Peay cut the lead to one run with a four-run burst in the fifth as pinch hitter Adam Browett blasted a two-run triple to right field, catcher Trey Lucas hit a run-scoring double and first baseman John Hogan added a run-scoring double one out later.

The Cougars added a run to their lead in the sixth, taking advantage of a wild pitch and a Govs error to put a man at third base for centerfielder Adam Eggemeyer who hit a sacrifice fly to push the lead back to 9-7.

Austin Peay rallied for three more runs in the seventh, Browett hitting his second triple to tie the game, 9-9. One batter later pinch hitter Daniel Baggett slipped a double just inside the left field line to bring the game-winning run home.

Reliever Eric Davis got into trouble in the eighth, putting two men on with one out before being lifted. Closer Zach Gerler was called upon and induced a pair of ground outs to end the threat and retired the side in order in the ninth to pick up his season's fourth save.

Austin Peay opened the game auspiciously, scoring two runs in the first inning on Lucas' RBI double and Hogan's run-scoring single. But the Govs left the bases loaded as SIUE starter Luke Ingersoll wiggled out of the jam.

Ingersoll kept the Govs in check through the next three-plus innings, while the Cougars offense to pieced together a 8-1 run over the next five innings. SIU Edwardsville scored four runs in the third inning, two coming on Eggemeyer's two-run home run and two more on shortstop Mike Hurt's two-run double, giving SIUE a lead they would not relinquish until the seventh inning.

Davis (1-0), the fifth of six APSU pitchers, picked up the win after allowing one hit in 1.1 innings of work. Starter Ryne Harper made his season's first start and showed signs of rust, allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits over 2.1 innings.

Lucas extended his hitting streak to 14 games (dating back to last season), finishing 2-for-5 with two RBI. Browett was 2-for-2 with four RBI after coming off the bench. Hogan had the Govs other two RBI, going 2-for-4 at the plate.

Dustin Quattrocchi (1-3) suffered the loss in relief for SIUE, allowing seven runs on six hits in 2.2 innings. Starter Luke Ingersoll settled in after his rough start and held the Govs to three runs (two earned) on seven hits over 4.1 innings.

Eggemeyer was 1-for-4 with three RBI to lead the Cougars offense. Hurt finished the day 3-for-5 with two RBI and catcher Brett Lancaster added a 2-for-4, two RBI outing.