Murray State
Arkansas State
'Breds outduel Arkansas State 5-3
4/13/2005 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
The Murray State Thoroughbreds chalked up yet another come-from-behind win, this one a 5-3 toe-to-toe battle with visiting Arkansas State this afternoon at Reagan Field. The game was the last scheduled non-conference home game for the 'Breds.
The game was overshadowed by rain clouds accompanied by intermittent sprinkles, but the only rain delay came near the start of the game, delaying the first pitch by 12 minutes.
Arkansas State (24-11) opened the scoring in the first inning when Chris Rich hit a two-out double, then Geoff Desmond singled him in for an early 1-0 lead.
In the bottom half of the inning, the 'Breds (19-15) answered when Chaz Ebert led off with a walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Seth Hudson, and scored on a single by Clint Griggs to tie the score at 1-1.
The Indians scored again in the fourth inning when Kevin Kull reached on a two-out error, then stole second. Mike Sirianni hit an infield single, moving Kull to third, and Brad Burkhead hit a two-run triple down the right-field line, giving ASU a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, MSU responded. Austin Swain led off with a single, then Phil Lopez singled him to second. Ebert then hit an infield single to load the bases, and Swain scored on a sacrifice fly by Hudson, moving Lopez to third and Ebert to second. Griggs laced a two-out triple down the right-field line, scoring Lopez and Ebert and giving Murray State a 4-3 lead.
The 'Breds added an insurance run in the seventh when Lopez singled up the middle, went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Brett Mullins, then scored on a single by Ebert for the final 5-3 score.
"This was a good team," said MSU head coach Rob McDonald. "They didn't have a conference game this weekend, so they threw their No. 2 pitcher. He threw well, but we hung in there and battled.
"Jake (Ociesa) kept us in the game, and I was really impressed with Michal Perconte. He had good command of his pitches and made a nice fielding play."
Murray State was led by Swain, who went 3-for-3 with a run scored. Griggs went 2-for-4 with a triple and three runs batted in, while Ebert and Lopez each went 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Ebert also had an RBI for the 'Breds.
On defense, Griggs had a team season-high 14 putouts at first base, while Ociesa and third baseman Alex Stewart each had a game-high four assists.
On the mound, Ociesa (3-3) got the win, allowing three runs (one earned) on seven hits, striking out three and walking four in six innings. Perconte entered in the seventh inning, picking up his first save, allowing no runs on no hits, striking out one in three innings, facing the minimum nine batters.
MSU pitchers allowed no hits and only one base-runner over the last 4-1/3 innings.
For Arkansas State, Sirianni and Burkhead each had two hits, with Burkhead getting a triple and two RBIs, Rich had a double for the Indians.
On defense, Desmond had a team-high six putouts at first base, while seven ASU fielders had two assists apiece.
On the mound, Blake Ring (4-5) took the loss, allowing five runs on nine hits, striking out two and walking two in six-plus innings. Michael Williams came on in the seventh, allowing no runs on three hits, striking out two in two innings.
Murray State (7-2 OVC) -- in second place in the Ohio Valley Conference standings -- visits league-leading Morehead State (8-0 OVC) for a three-game series this weekend. The Saturday double-header begins at 1 p.m. CT, while the Sunday game begins at noon CT. All three games can be heard locally on WRKY (1130 AM, Murray).
