Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score | Photo Gallery | Bo Durkac Postgame
NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State baseball team was swept in both games of a Missouri Valley Conference doubleheader Saturday at Duffy Bass Field. The Purple Aces won the opener, 12-9 in 11 innings, before falling in the nightcap, 8-1.
Evansville improved to 12-22 overall and 3-5 in Valley play. Illinois State dropped to 10-23 and 0-5.
Game 1
Evansville 12, Illinois State 9 (11 innings)
A quick start and a big finish helped Evansville win Saturday's opener. The Purple Aces scored five runs in the top of the first inning and then five more in the top of the 11th to earn the opening-game win.
Evansville tied the game in the ninth inning to force extra innings and then won it there, thanks to the offensive outburst in the top of the 11th. Illinois State scored two runs in the bottom of the inning but the comeback came up short as the Redbirds were not able to bring the potential game-tying run to the plate.
Evansville got off to a fast start with five runs in the first inning. Craig Shepherd started the game with a solo home run to left field. Korbin Williams then walked to set the table for a two-run home run from Trey Hair. Travis Tokarek and Andrew Tanous later scored on a Redbird fielding error.
The Redbirds got all five runs back, however, in the bottom of the inning. A two-run home run from Noah Sadler got things started. An RBI double from Nick Zouras kept the line moving and a two-run single from Derek Parola evened the score. All five runs were scored with two outs.
Evansville reclaimed the lead on a sacrifice fly from Shepherd in the fourth inning, but Illinois State tied it again on Bryce Grimm's RBI double in the fifth.
The Redbirds took the lead in the seventh when Joe Aeilts beat the throw to first base on a bases-loaded chopper to third base. The Redbirds held the lead until the top of the ninth, when Dalton Horstmeier trotted home on a wild pitch to tie the game.
Evansville then finished the game the same way it started it, with five runs in the final inning of the game. An RBI single from Tokarek started the rally in the 11th inning. Tanous followed with a two-run single and Kenton Crews capped the scoring with a two-run homer to left field.
Run-scoring doubles from Grimm and Parola helped the Redbirds pull two runs back in the bottom of the 11th inning.
Zach Barnhart and Parola had three hits each for the Redbirds. Braithwaite and Grimm tallied two apiece.
Redbird starter Jeffrey Barton allowed six runs (three earned) over five innings. Jack Landwehr followed with three shutout innings in relief. Vogrin suffered the loss after allowing six runs over 2.2 innings. Jack Bellinger got the final out of the 11th inning for Illinois State.
Game 2
Evansville 8, Illinois State 1
Evansville scored seven runs over the fifth and sixth innings to pull away and secure the doubleheader sweep in Saturday's nightcap.
Aces starter Connor Strain kept the Redbirds off the scoreboard for seven innings while the visitors piled up a lead in the second game. Â
Evansville scored first in the second game of Saturday's twin bill, plating the game's first run on a two-out RBI single from Nate Reeder. The Purple Aces then added three more in the fifth as they took advantage of two errors and a pair of wild pitches, making it a 4-0 lead.
Evansville doubled its lead in the sixth on a sacrifice fly from Hair, just moments before a three-run home run from Tanous made it an 8-0 advantage.
The Redbirds got on the scoreboard on Grimm's sacrifice fly in the eighth inning, but that was all the offense the Redbirds mustered in the second game.
Sadler and Parola tallied two hits each for Illinois State. Both players also drew a walk in the loss.
Redbird starter Brady Huffman allowed one run over four innings. Colton Johnson was charged with five runs (three earned) over 1.1 innings in relief, before giving way to Michael Sebby, who allowed two runs over one-third of an inning. Nick Alvarado and Jeff Lindgren turned in scoreless appearances to finish out the game.
The weekend series with Evansville concludes Sunday at 1 p.m. at Duffy Bass Field. Links for live video, audio and stats are available at GoRedbirds.com. Fans can also follow @RedbirdBaseball on Twitter for live updates and more.
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