Birmingham, Ala. - The Eastern Kentucky University baseball team pushed its win streak to four games and climbed up the Ohio Valley Conference standings by taking both games of a doubleheader with Samford on Saturday. The Colonels (14-21, 6-7 OVC) trailed 4-0 early in the first game but rallied to take a 9-4 win, then held on for a 4-3 victory in the second installment.
Samford (13-25, 6-8 OVC) scored two runs in both the first and second innings and led 4-0 after four frames. The Colonels cut their deficit to one run, 4-3, in the fifth thanks in part to a RBI single from senior Derrick Bussell and a RBI double from junior Brett Bolger. Bussell was instrumental in Eastern's win, going 3-for-4 at the plate with three runs scored and two RBI. The senior center fielder also accounted for two of EKU's five stolen bases in the game.
After a scoreless sixth, Eastern went on top with a four-run seventh inning. Freshman Lucas Waters got EKU going with his second double of the game and came around to score the tying run off a double from Bussell. Leading 5-4, sophomore Tony Wells delivered a two-run single to put the Colonels on top 7-4.
Eastern tacked on two more runs in the eighth to put the game out of reach for the Bulldogs. Senior Bryan Stevenson, who went 2-for-5 with two RBI and two steals, capped off EKU's scoring with a RBI base knock.
Sophomore McKenzie Willoughby (5-2) left at the start of the eighth inning having allowed four runs (two unearned) over 7.0 innings of work. Willoughby struck out five and worked around seven hits to remain undefeated in conference play (4-0). Junior Greg Harper closed out the game by pitching 2.0 scoreless innings after holding Samford to just one hit.
The Colonels offense kept rolling at the start of game two, as RBI singles from senior Adam Visnic and Wells gave Eastern a 2-0 second-inning lead. Samford plated a run in the bottom of the second to pull within one, 2-1, but Stevenson answered with a solo homer to lead off the third and extend EKU's lead back to two runs. It was the fifth home run of the year for Stevenson, tying him with senior Will Whisenant for the team lead.
Waters gave Eastern an insurance run in the fourth when his single up the middle allowed Visnic to score and make it a 4-1 contest. Waters led the Colonels with a 2-for-3 effort and two RBI, followed by two hits from Whisenant.
Freshman Shane Zegarac (2-3) took the mound in the seventh looking for his second complete game of the year, but was pulled in favor of senior Andy Polzin after issuing a leadoff walk. Polzin struck out the first batter he faced, then watched as the next hitter reached on a fielding error by the EKU defense.
With runners on second and third, Matt Alling came through with a two-run double to pull the Bulldogs within a run, 4-3. With Alling representing the tying run at second base, Polzin buckled down and fanned the next two batters to secure the win and pick up his first save of the year.
Zegarac allowed just four hits over 6.0 innings of work, but had to overcome seven walks to record his second victory of the season.
The Colonels return to action tomorrow afternoon when they close out their series with a 1 p.m. meeting against the Bulldogs. A win over Samford on Sunday would mark EKU's first OVC series sweep of the season.
