Redbird Offense Leads to Victory Over Beacons, 18-3

VALPARAISO, Ind. – Valparaiso scored first, but the Illinois State baseball team was clicking on all cylinders on Saturday at Emory G. Bauer Field as five players totaled a pair of RBIs to lead the Redbirds to a 18-3 win over Valparaiso.

Illinois State (14-15 overall, 6-2 MVC) was led by junior Daniel Pacella who finished 2-for-4 on the day with five RBIs and a home run.

The Redbirds also saw multiple hits from senior Kyle Gibson, freshman Brayden Bakes, senior Daniel Contreras, and senior Noah Smith as the Birds led 10-3 after five innings.

Senior Carter Monke threw three scoreless innings in relief, conceding only four hits to the Beacons (7-19 overall, 2-6 MVC).

Top Hitters:

• Daniel Pacella: 2-for-4, HR, 2B, 5 RBI
• Noah Smith: 3-for-4, 2B, RBI, 3 R
• Brayden Bakes: 3-for-5, 3B, 3 RBI

Pitching Breakdown:

• Tanner Perry: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K's
• Carter Monke (W, 3-5): 3.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
• Ryan Weaver: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K's
• Toby Schriefer: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K's

Scoring Breakdown:

• Valparaiso scored three runs in the bottom of the 1st thanks to an RBI single and two Redbird wild pitches
• The Redbirds' bats went off for six runs in the top of the 3^rd. ILS scored off an RBI double by Shai Robinson, two-RBI double from Daniel Pacella, throwing error by Valparaiso's catcher, sac fly by Graham Mastros, and RBI single from Daniel Contreras
• Pacella would expand the lead to 9-3 in the 4th with a three-run home run to right field
• Kyle Gibson added on for the Birds with an RBI single in the 5th to make it 10-3 ILS
• Illinois State scored eight runs off six hits in the 6th to put the game away at 18-3

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Judah Morris has reached base in 26 straight games
• Pacella tallies his 10th home run of the season, tied for the team lead with Morris
• The last time ILS scored exactly 18 runs came to open the 2024 campaign versus St. Thomas (18-12)
• When playing in Valparaiso, the Birds are 5-4 under Steve Holm.

UP NEXT

Illinois State concludes the weekend at Valparaiso on Sunday at 1 PM from Emory G. Bauer Field.

For the latest updates on Illinois State Baseball, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on X (@RedbirdBaseball) and Instagram (isuredbirdbaseball), and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Baseball).

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