SPRINGFIELD, Mo.– Third-year sophomore Ryan Cermak and fifth-year junior Jake McCaw blasted back-to-back home runs in the 8th inning to lift the Illinois State baseball team to a 4-3 victory over Missouri State at Hammons Field on Sunday.
Cermak's 18th home run of the season tied the game at 3-3 before McCaw's 12th home run of 2022 put the Redbirds (19-27 overall, 6-12 Missouri Valley Conference) on top for good.
Fourth-year sophomore Justin Schubert threw 4.1 innings in relief, recording the win as he did not allow a run in the 7th, 8th, or 9th innings. Fith-year senior Colin Wyman also had a solid showing on the mound, allowing one run in 4.2 innings. Wyman was forced to exit the game after a 1:41 rain delay.
The Bears drop back to .500 at 24-24 overall and move to 7-11 in the MVC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
An RBI double from first-year freshman JP Gauthier put the Redbirds up 1-0 after four innings.
Cermak robbed what would have been a game-tying home run in the 4th inning.
The Bears got a solo shot in the 5th inning to tie the game at 1-1 and a two-run homer in the 6th put MSU up, 3-1.
Cermak smacked a two-run home run to left field to tie the game in the 8th inning before McCaw launched a solo blast well beyond the right field fence.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
UP NEXT
Illinois State is scheduled to play at Indiana on Tuesday with a 6:00 p.m. CT start, seeking to defeat its fourth Big Ten team in 2022.
For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).
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