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RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University baseball team rallied for its second come-from-behind victory over Southeast Missouri State in as many days as the Colonels erased an early six-run deficit to defeat the Redhawks in the bottom of the ninth, 11-10, in the deciding game of this weekend’s conference series at Turkey Hughes Field on Sunday afternoon.
After the Redhawks (26-20, 12-8 OVC) jumped out to an early 8-2 advantage, the Colonels slowly chipped away and finally took the lead in the bottom of the seventh when freshman Michael Garcia lifted a sacrifice fly to center that scored sophomore Jayson Langfels and made it 10-9.
In the top of the ninth, however, SEMO designated hitter Louie Haseltine, with one out, crushed a solo shot to dead center off EKU reliever Alex Napier that tied the game and sent it to the bottom of the ninth.
The first two Colonel batters of the ninth reached base as senior Tyler Rehmel singled through the left side and Langfels walked. Freshman Dustin Dunlop, in his first at-bat of the game, then laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt down the left field line. The throw to first got past SEMO first baseman Kody Campbell and Rehmel scrambled home from second, scoring the winning run with a head-first slide into the plate.
For the Colonels (26-21, 9-11 OVC), the two wins this weekend were critical in keeping their hopes of making the OVC Tournament alive. Despite taking two of three from the Redhawks, EKU is now in seventh place in the conference after Tennessee Tech moved into the sixth spot with a sweep of Jacksonville State this weekend.
Various conference series next weekend, including the Colonels’ own at Eastern Illinois, will decide if EKU makes the trip to Paducah this year.
Langfels (2-1) picked up the win for EKU. The sophomore, who is a third baseman by trade, came on in the top of the ninth, after Haseltine’s home run, to induce the final two outs of the inning and was, thus, the pitcher of record when the game ended.
After started Matt Harris was knocked around early, freshman lefty Greg Terry entered the game and baffled the SEMO hitters. In the best performance of his young career, the southpaw went 6.1 innings and allowed just one run on two hits to facilitate the Colonel offense’s comeback.
SEMO reliever Ryan Poole (1-1) was saddled with the loss as he was responsible for Rehmel, the base runner who scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth.
Langfels also led the Colonels at the plate as he went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBI. He now leads the OVC with a .458 batting average and 68 RBI.
Senior Aaron Barrows and freshman Richie Rodriguez both compiled two hits and two runs scored on the day.
For SEMO, Haseltine led the way, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored and four RBI. Nick Harris, meanwhile, went 2-for-3 with a run scored and three RBI.
In a scene similar to both games yesterday, SEMO jumped on EKU early and scored five runs in the top of the first.
In the home half of the first, senior Matt Davis scored on a wild pitch and Barrows was brought home on a sacrifice fly to center to cut the deficit to three; however, the Redhawks added three more in the second to go ahead by six runs, 8-2.
The Colonels’ comeback started in the third when Langfels, with two outs in the inning, ripped a two-run base hit into center field that scored Barrows and Rodriguez and made it 8-4.
SEMO added a run in the top of the fourth and would have added more if not for a spectacular defensive play by Garcia in right field. With two outs and two men on in that inning, Harris skied a foul ball to right that appeared to be out of play. Garcia, however, caught the ball on a dead sprint, flipped over the right field fence and held onto the ball.
Garcia’s play in the outfield rallied the Colonels to three more runs in their half of the inning. Garcia scored the first run on an error by SEMO second baseman Tony Spencer. Davis then made it 9-7 with a two-run double into left center. It was the senior’s first two RBI of the series.
With Terry mastering the Redhawks from mound, the Colonels added another run in the fifth when Langfels scored on a wild pitch and then took the lead in the seventh when Rehmel scored on another SEMO error and Garcia plated Langfels with a sacrifice fly.
EKU slipped out of a potential Redhawk rally in the eighth with two spectacular defensive plays. With one out in the inning and the Colonels ahead by only one run, SEMO’s best hitter, Tyrell Cummings, ripped a line drive to left. Langfels, playing third base at the time, made a leaping catch, however, to rob Cummings of extra bases.
The very next batter, All-American catcher Jim Klocke, hit a ball to dead center that Davis reached over the wall and robbed from being a game-tying home run.
The Colonels will face Eastern Illinois on the road next weekend in their final series of the year. First pitch for Friday’s doubleheader is 1:00 p.m. Saturday’s single game will also begin at 1:00 p.m.
