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MOREHEAD, Ky. – East Tennessee State's baseball team scored 13 runs in the final four innings and erased a seven-run deficit in defeating Morehead State 17-14 at Allen Field Tuesday.
The Buccaneers, who recorded 23 hits, improved to 11-7. Morehead State, which hadn't faced ETSU since 2002, slipped to 10-7. The teams combined for 41 hits, 13 doubles, 23 runners left on base and six errors.
Morehead State built a 6-1 lead after two innings and led 11-4 heading to the top of the sixth. ETSU hit three-run homers in the sixth and seventh and added two to hold a 14-12 cushion in the eighth. MSU battled back to tie the contest 14-14 with a pair of scores in the eighth, but the Buccaneers scored three times in the top of the ninth.
"The bottom line is we have to pitch better than we did today and really in the last few games," Head Coach Mike McGuire. "Early on this season, it was our offense that was scuffling a bit when our pitching was great, but now for some reason, our pitching is starting to struggle. I have no doubt our guys will work hard to improve and fix things."
ETSU used seven pitchers, with closer Dillon Cate getting the final five outs, including two strikeouts, to improve to 2-1.
Morehead State saw five pitchers take the mound. Sophomore lefthander Cable Wright was charged with four earned runs off three hits while walking three to be saddled with the loss. He slipped to 0-1. Along with Wright, three other Eagle hurlers allowed at least four runs.
Six ETSU hitters recorded at least three hits with first baseman Kevin Phillips going 4-for-6 with one of the three-run round-trippers. Third baseman Chris Cook, who led the team with five RBI, also plated three with a long bomb. Designated hitter Andrew Lasure, who entered the game 2-for-24 at the plate, had three hits and four RBI.
Morehead State, which had 18 hits, got three each from senior left fielder Chris Robinson, senior first baseman Kane Sweeney, senior right fielder Brandon Rawe and freshman second baseman Braxton Morris.
Sweeney hit a first-inning three-run homer and drove in a season-best five runs. He has now reached base in 24 consecutive games dating back to 2014. Rawe upped his hitting streak to eight contests and has improved his batting average more than 100 points in that span.
Morehead State travels to face Marshall on Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET at the Kennedy Center YMCA Field in Huntington, W.Va. Michael Gustin will have free audio play-by-play on MSUEagles.com and the Eagle Empire app.
