Murray State University Athletics
Racer Rewind: Duke Walks Off JSU...Again
3/24/2020 11:59:00 AM | Baseball
With the 2020 spring sports season being cut short, we will look back on some big games in Racer history with our Racer Rewind series. Today, we flash back to exactly one year ago when the Murray State baseball team took on Jacksonville State in the rubber game of a three-game series.
The Gamecocks would eventually go on to win the 2019 OVC Regular Season and Tournament Championships, but on this day, Tyler Duke played hero for the second time in three days at Reagan Field.
Read the recap below
For the second time in three days, Tyler Duke played hero as his walk-off triple, Sunday afternoon at Reagan Field, gave the Racers a 9-8 win over Jacksonville State.
"The fight the guys showed, the two come-from-behind wins, that's huge. That's just heart and effort," said head coach Dan Skirka. "Going into our bye week it feels good with three series wins."
Duke's triple capped a four-run comeback in the final two innings that started with Wes Schad hitting a three-run home run off the light-post in right-center field to make it a one-run game. Ryan Perkins followed with a triple and Jaron Robinson knocked him in with a sacrifice fly to tie the game and set up Duke's heroics in the ninth.
Tyler Duke sent everyone home!!! 🏡
— Murray State Sports (@MSURacers) March 24, 2020
Relive the walk-off #OTD from the 2019 @RacersBaseball Season! ⚾️
🗞 https://t.co/ZNlsSJLYku#ShoesUp 🏇⚾️ pic.twitter.com/87J6cMHWLm
In the ninth, Sean Darmafall pinch hit to lead off the inning and walked on four pitches before stealing second to put the winning run in scoring position. Duke then hit a fly ball to right that Darmafall went back to second to tag up on, but when the ball kept carrying and eventually hit off the wall and bounced away from the right fielder, Darmafall had to turn on the jets, beating the throw home and scoring the winning run, just as he did on Friday.
Peyton Hayes earned the win as he pitched a scoreless ninth inning after the Racers had tied it up. After allowing an infield single and a wild pitch to put the runner on second with no outs, a running catch by Jake Slunder on the warning track in left kept the go-ahead run from scoring before Hayes finished off the ninth with two straight strikeouts.
