March 5, 2010
Box Score
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Illinois State had plenty of hits and in clutch situations, but allowed eight walks and committed four errors in a 6-4 loss to Indiana to open the Music City Classic at Hawkins Field Friday.
Illinois State (4-3) out-hit the Hoosiers, 10-7, and scored three of the team's four runs with two outs, but couldn't overcome a slew of slew of free passes issued to Indiana (3-5) batters. Only one of Indiana's run scorers reached on a base hit, with four drawing walks and another getting hit by a pitch. Indiana stranded 12 runners and Illinois State stranded eight.
Kenny Long (1-1) was tagged with the loss for the Redbirds despite helping ISU wriggle out of a jam in the sixth inning and striking out three in the seventh. Long allowed the go-ahead run in the seventh after a single by Tyler Rogers scored Josh Lyon from second base. Lyon reached base on a walk.
Indiana strung together three hits with two outs in the first inning to plate the games' first run against ISU starter Corey Maines and led throughout the contest. Illinois State was able to pull even three times in the game, but for every charge, the Hoosiers had a response.
Josh Colon drove in Evan Kohli with two outs in the bottom of the second inning to make it a 1-1 contest, but the Hoosiers drew a pair of walks to lead off the fourth inning and pushed across both of those runners. Jake Thornton provided another two-out, game-tying hit, scoring Anthony Ruffolo and Ryan Court on a single up the middle in the sixth, but again, Indiana plated the run off of Long in the seventh and added another in the eighth.
Indiana's Mike McKinley (2-0) earned the win in relief and Chris Squires pitched the final 1.2 innings to notch his second save of the season for the Hoosiers.
Gabe DeMarco, Brett Kay, Ruffolo and Thornton all had two hits for the Redbirds. Kay batted in the leadoff spot for the first time this season after Kevin Tokarski was scratched from the pregame lineup with back pain, and has multiple hits in five of his six starts. Both of Ruffolo's hits were doubles.
The Redbirds meet-up with tournament host Vanderbilt at 4 p.m. Saturday before concluding the Music City Classic against Kent State at noon on Sunday. Senior left-handed pitcher Ryan Copeland is the probable starter for Illinois State Saturday against Vanderbilt's Taylor Hill.
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