LEXINGTON, Ky. --The Morehead State Eagles took a 5-2 lead into the eighth inning, but could not hang on and fell 9-5 to the Kentucky Wildcats Tuesday.
Matt Bettio (0-1) came out of the bullpen for Morehead State (2-2) and took the loss. Joe Rotkis was a bright spot for the Eagles, starting the ballgame and throwing five innings, giving up one run on three hits, with four walks and one strikeout.
Senior Ryley Preece led the way offensively for the Eagles, going 2-for-5 in the ballgame with a double and an RBI. Freshman Hayden Robbins furnished a standout performance as well, going 3-for-4 with an RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Morehead State ran into trouble in the first inning, as Kentucky loaded the bases with nobody out. Under pressure, Joe Rotkis made a phenomenal play on a ground ball back to him, turning a 1-2-3 double play before forcing a groundout to end the inning.
The Eagles got on the scoreboard first, starting in the fourth inning. Morehead State managed to push across two runs in the inning.
The Wildcats failed to push any runs across before the Eagles offense got back to their scoring ways the next inning. Preece came across to score the lone run of the inning for Morehead State, which brought the score to 3-0 in favor of the Eagles.
Kentucky narrowed Morehead State's lead to 3-1 before the Eagles stretched the advantage to 5-1 in the sixth inning. The Eagles scored twice, with one run coming across on Preece's single. The Eagles were unable to hold the lead, as Kentucky scored eight times over the remaining three innings to grab the 9-5 win.
GAME NOTES
» Robbins led the Eagles, amassing three base knocks in the ballgame.
» Morehead State's highest scoring inning was the sixth, when it pushed two runs across.
» Morehead State pitchers faced 41 Kentucky hitters in the game, allowing 15 ground balls and five fly balls while striking out two.
» Preece led the Eagles at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI.
Morehead State is back in action on the road this weekend, as the Eagles travel to North Alabama for a three-game set.
