Racers Secure 30th Win and First Valley Tournament Win

Tuesday, May 23

Terre Haute, IND.

5 p.m. CT

Murray State

Valparaiso

Murray State

Photo by: Dave Winder-Murray State Athletics

Racers Secure 30th Win and First Valley Tournament Win

5/23/2023 8:53:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Photo Gallery

Murray State baseball downed Valpo 11-6 in the first round of the MVC Baseball Championships

Murray State baseball picked up the 11-6 victory over Valparaiso in the first round of the Missouri Valley Conference Baseball Championships at Bob Warn Field in Terre Haute, Indiana. The win marked the 30th of the season for the Racers, giving them three-straight 30-win seasons for just the second time in program history as Murray State won 30 games in each season from 1973-76.

After falling behind 4-0 in the first inning, the Racers stormed back, to outscore the Beacons 11-2 the rest of the way.

Four different Racers put up a multihit performance as Dustin Mercer, Drew Vogel, Ethan Krizen, and Seth Gardner all had two hits. Logan Bland along with Vogel, Carson Garner, and Gardner all had two RBIs on the night.

Garner blasted his 10th home run of the season over the trees beyond the left-center field fence for the lone big fly for MSU. Brennan McCullough, Vogel, and Cade Sammons each doubled to round out the extra-base hits for the Racers.

Relief pitching played a vital role in the victory as bullpen arms Matt Boynton and Nathan Holler combined for 7.0 innings pitched while allowing just one earned run and striking out seven. Boynton earned the win with 4.0 innings pitched with no earned runs while giving up just three Beacon hits. Holler picked up his first save of the season with 3.0 innings pitched while giving up just one runs and striking out six.

Next Up

The Racers now set their sights on the second-seeded Missouri State Bears for a Wednesday matchup at 6:30 p.m. CT in Terre Haute.

Scouting Report

The Bears are led by MVC Player of the Year Spencer Nivens and Conference Freshman of the Year Zack Stewart. Nivens holds a .357 average of the season with 15 doubles, 14 home runs, and 45 RBIs while Stewart holds a .311 average with 18 doubles, 11 home runs, and a team-high 58 RBIs.

The matchup will be streamed on ESPN+ while Live Stats can be found on GoRacers.com.