RICHMOND, Ky. – Junior Tyler Barnett and senior Shawn Flora each had two hits and four RBI to lead the Eastern Kentucky baseball team to a 16-11 victory over the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on Wednesday afternoon at Turkey Hughes Field. It marked the Colonels first victory over Western since a 16-6 win on March 21, 2004. EKU improved to 17-20-1 with the victory while the Hilltoppers fell to 16-23.

The Colonels ran out to a big lead early, with the first of two six run innings in the second. Eastern loaded the bases with one out and Flora followed with a two-run single. Sophomore Aaron Barrows made it 3-0 with an RBI single and Barnett closed out the scoring with a three-run home run, his third of the year.

Western got two runs back in the third as Troy Frazier led off with a double and Matt Hightower followed with single to left which Barrows bobbled, allowing Frazier to score. Casey Hamilton then knocked in Hightower with an RBI double to cut the Eastern lead to 6-2.

WKU cut further into the Colonel lead with two more runs in the fourth on a C.J. Wamsely solo home run and a Scott Kaskie RBI single.

The Hilltoppers took its first lead in the fifth with three runs against EKU reliever David Owens. Scotty Colt drove cut the Eastern lead to 6-5 with an RBI double and Tyler Bumgarner followed with a bases-loaded walk to tie it at six. Western took the lead later in the inning on a Frazier fielder's choice.

Eastern answered right back though with the second six-run inning of the game in the bottom of the fifth. Sophomore Lucas Waters led off with his second home run of the season to tie the game at seven. Senior Tony Wells then reached on a single, moved to second on a wild pitch and came around to score when Kaskie, the Western center fielder, misplayed a line drive off the bat of sophomore Dylan McMaine.

Seymour made it 9-7 one out later with an RBI double and Flora then hammered a two-run shot to left to give Eastern a four-run cushion. Barnett drove in the final run of the inning with an RBI double to make it 13-7 and Western got no closer than five runs the rest of the way.

Owens (1-1) picked up his first victory of the season, allowing just two earned runs in 3.2 innings of work. Ben Paxton (2-1) got the loss for Western, allowed two runs in his 3.0 innings.

Eastern returns to OVC play this weekend, traveling to take on the Samford Bulldogs.