BOX SCORE I PLAY-BY-PLAY

RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University baseball team rolled past Murray State, 5-1, on Sunday afternoon at Turkey Hughes Field to earn the series sweep over the Thoroughbreds. The surging Colonels (19-29, 10-11 OVC) have now won five straight games in a late-season push to qualify for the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.

Junior left-hander Greg Terry (3-0) and junior right-hander Matt Fyffe combined to shut down the MSU offense in Sunday’s win. Terry worked 5.2 innings and allowed only one run on five hits to earn the win, while Fyffe held the Breds (16-29, 6-10 OVC) scoreless over the final 3.1 innings of the game, allowing just one hit and striking out five batters, to pick up his first save of the season.

Luke Shuemaker (3-5) picked up the loss for MSU, pitching just three innings and surrendering four runs on four hits.

Junior Richie Rodriguez broke out of a 2-for-18 slump by going 3-for-5 with a run scored on the afternoon, while sophomore Austin Grisham batted 1-for-3 with a pair of RBI and his second career home run.

After freshman Bryan Soloman scored Rodriguez with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first, EKU took advantage of three MSU throwing errors in the bottom of the fourth to take a commanding 4-0 lead. Junior Michael Garcia walked to lead off the inning, went to second on a walk to junior Dustin Dunlop and then took third on a wild pitch as Dunlop scampered to second following a throwing error to third by MSU catcher Jacob Rhodes. The next batter, sophomore Matt Phipps, laced a base hit into left center that plated Garcia, another throwing error by MSU left fielder Wes Warren allowed Dunlop to score and a final throwing error by MSU third baseman Paul Ritzheimer advanced Phipps to third. Grisham then scored Phipps with a sacrifice fly to right that made it 4-0.

After MSU got on the board with a run in the top of the sixth, Grisham matched that run with a solo blast to right in the home half of the inning, and Fyffe slammed the door on the Breds over the final 3.1 innings of the game to seal the important conference victory.

EKU is now 7-1 versus Division I baseball teams from Kentucky this season.

The Colonels return to action this weekend when they play their final OVC series of the season at preseason conference favorite Jacksonville State.