Box Score
PEORIA, Ill. – The Illinois State baseball team was unable to overcome Bradley's six-run first inning as the host Braves earned a run-ruled, walk-off win Friday night at Dozer Park. Bradley won by a 13-3 count.
A pair of first-inning home runs helped Bradley take a 6-0 lead after the first frame. The Braves added four runs in the third and two more in the fifth. The hosts' final run came on a wild pitch in the seventh.
Bradley (17-18, 3-4 MVC) got off to a quick start with six runs in the first inning. A Luke Mangieri single scored Luke Shadid to open the scoring. A three-run home run from Derek Bangert followed and Jean-Francois Garon capped the rally with a two-run homer.
The Redbirds (10-26, 0-7) got a run back in the top of the second on Jordan Libman's two-out RBI double, but the Braves came back with four runs in the third. Run-scoring singles from Brendan Dougherty and Andy Shadid plated the first two runs. A Redbird error and Luke Shadid's RBI groundout brought in the next two.
Owen Miller provided a single that scored Joe Butler in the top of the fifth, but the Braves came back with two in the bottom of the inning, thanks to an RBI double from Garon and a sacrifice fly from Luke Shadid.
Nick Zouras cleared the left-center field fence in the top of the sixth for Illinois State, but Bradley earned the walk-off win in the seventh when Andy Shadid scored on a wild pitch.
Redbird starter Colton Johnson allowed 10 runs (eight earned) over the first four innings. David Meade surrendered two runs in the fifth inning. Jack Bellinger finished out the game on the mound for Illinois State, allowing one run over 1.2 innings.
The Redbirds return to Dozer Park Saturday to take on Bradley at 2 p.m. Links for live stats are available at GoRedbirds.com, and fans can follow @RedbirdBaseball on Twitter for live updates and more.
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