BOX SCORE I PLAY-BY-PLAY

RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University baseball team dropped the deciding game of this weekend’s series with Jacksonville State, 11-3, on Sunday afternoon at Turkey Hughes Field. The Colonels conclude the OVC regular season with a 9-12 record and will watch as their postseason fate is decided by other teams next weekend.

Junior right-hander Stephen Hefler (4-4) started on the mound for the Colonels and got the loss, going 3.2 innings and allowing seven runs on five hits.

Aaron Elias (1-1) earned his first win of the season for JSU, pitching 5.2 innings and surrendering just two runs on six hits.

Junior Jayson Langfels batted 2-for-3 on the day with a run scored. Langfels entered this weekend mired in an 0-for-14 slump but responded by batting .556 (5-for-9) against the Gamecocks.

Junior Ryan Faidley and sophomore Dustin Dunlop both had two hits for the Colonels, while sophomore Richie Rodriguez hit EKU’s only home run of the day, a solo shot to lead off the bottom of the first.

Andrew Edge paced the Gamecocks offensively, batting 3-for-5 with four RBI and a run scored.

JSU got on the board first in the top of the first as an infield hit by Edge scored Bert Smith and made it 1-0. The Colonels, however, took the lead in their half of the inning as Rodriguez blasted a solo home run and then Faidley ripped a single up the middle that plated Langfels.

The Gamecocks scored five in the third – three off an opposite field home run by Sam Eberle – and then added two more in the fourth to take a commanding lead.

EKU added a run in the bottom of the eighth off a sacrifice fly by sophomore Michael Garcia that plated fellow sophomore Jacob Daniel, but it was too little too late.

Tanner Freshour pitched the final 3.1 innings of the game for JSU, allowing just one run on three hits to earn his first save of the spring.

The Colonels finish the season 7-2 in OVC home games.

EKU is the first team in the league to wrap up its OVC schedule. Every other conference team plays next weekend. The Colonels will keep an especially keen eye on Eastern Illinois, Morehead State, UT Martin and Austin Peay next weekend as they try to secure either the fifth or sixth seed in the upcoming OVC Tournament.

EKU returns to action with a midweek game at Louisville on Tuesday and will then wrap up its regular season schedule with a three game series with SIU Edwardsville at home next weekend.