May 18, 2007
Box Score
WICHITA, Kan. -
The Illinois State baseball team had not been shut out since May 14, 2006, at Missouri State until Friday night when ISU ran into Rob Musgrave. The Wichita State left-hander allowed just five hits on way to a complete game shut out as No. 12 Wichita State (45-17, 19-4) defeated the Redbirds (20-31, 8-15 MVC) by a score of 7-0 in front of 4,087 at Eck Stadium.
Redbird starter Mike Hlavacek (2-5) was solid for the first three innings of the game, as he allowed just two hits and struck out four batters during that time. But, the right-hander ran into trouble in the fifth inning and was charged with five runs on four hits to saddle him with the loss. Musgrave (8-2) earned the win, giving up no walks while striking out seven.
Head coach Jim Brownlee was impressed with the way Musgrave controlled the game on the mound.
"There's really not much a team can do when you run into a pitcher like we did tonight," said Brownlee. "Musgrave had control of all of his pitches and used his change up very effectively. I thought we had a good approach in the batter's box, but he did everything he needed to. It was one of the better pitching performances I've seen out of an opposing pitcher in a while against us."
The game was a pitcher's duel until the bottom of the fourth inning, when the Shockers scored five runs on five hits to take a 5-0 lead. Conor Gillaspie's RBI double plated the first run of the game for WSU and Josh Workman's two-run single up the middle scored two more runs to make the score 3-0 at the time. Later in the inning, Tyler Weber brought in the fourth run of the game with a RBI single and he scored the fifth and final run of the frame as Dusty Coleman was picked off in a rundown at first base by reliever Dan Sorce.
ISU threatened for the first time in the top of the fifth inning, but could not push a run across the plate as Wichita State held on to its five-run lead. Jesse Griswold led off the inning with single through the left side of the infield, the first of the day given up by Musgrave, and Kyle O'Brien followed with a single of his own into left field. Musgrave battled back and struck out Dan Weston and Kyle Cherney hit into a 6-4-3 double play to end the ISU threat.
WSU widened on its lead to 6-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning courtesy of a solo home run by Damon Sublett into left-centerfield, his fifth of the season. The Shockers would score again until the bottom of the eighth inning, when Workman came home on a Weber RBI single to make the score 7-0. That is where the score would stay, as Musgrave shut the Redbirds down in the ninth inning to close out the shutout.
The Redbirds wrap up their 2007 season on Saturday at 2 p.m. against the Shockers in the finale of their three-game Valley series. Junior Tyler Cox (3-1, 3.22 ERA) will take the mound for ISU against WSU left-hander Anthony Capra (5-0, 1.84 ERA), looking to avoid the series sweep and to earn the Redbirds' first win in Wichita since 1995.
