CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – Baseball earned a Mid-South Conference split with a 5-4 victory against Campbellsville Sunday in the opening game. After taking the opening game, the Tigers (17-14, 7-7 MSC) salvaged a split with a 5-0 victory over the Bears (19-17, 8-6 MSC) in a seven-inning game two.
The Bears found themselves up 1-0 quickly in the opening game with Brady Hightchew (SO/Newport, Ky.) keeping the inning alive and getting the game into scoring position with a two-out single and stolen base. He would then come around to score on an RBI single from Dustin Bickmeyer (SR/O'Fallon, Mo.) to make the score 1-0. However, the Tigers answered back with three runs in the bottom of the fourth on four hits and an SSU error to take a 3-1 lead.
Shawnee State bounced right back in its next at-bats as Brady Page (JR/Las Vegas, Nev.) led off the fifth inning with a single and stole second to put himself in scoring position. Todd Queener (SR/Mentor, Ohio) then singled to put runners on the corners, while a third straight single to start the inning from Ryan Queener (SR/Mentor, Ohio) drove in the first run. After the first out of the frame, Jake Cain (SO/Cold Spring, Ky.) doubled into right-centerfield, knotting the score at 3-3. A sacrifice fly from Mason Wisner (JR/Bay Village, Ohio) gave the Bears the lead for good, 4-3.
Wisner added another RBI to his total with a two-out single in the seventh to make the score 5-3. Campbellsville got one run back in the ninth off of the SSU bullpen. The Tigers started off the inning with two walks before Mason Wisner came in to shut down the Campbellsville rally. A bunt single loaded the bases, while an RBI groundout got the Tigers within a single out. However, Wisner would induce a 5-4-3 double play to end the Tigers' rally and pick up his fourth save of the year.
Derek Moore (FR/Wheelersburg, Ohio) got the start and improved to 6-1 on the year with eight solid innings as he allowed just seven hits and three runs (two earned). Moore struck out four batters on the afternoon before giving way to the bullpen before the start of the final frame.
In the second game, Campbellsville scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the first inning and added three more runs in the bottom of the third to jump out 5-0 with four innings to play.
That support would be more than enough for Campbellsville starter Bret DeRooy. DeRooey pitched the full seven innings, scattering five hit and one walk while striking out three batters in his game two win.
The Bears put the first two runners on base in the top of the third with a double from Hightchew and single from Bickmeyer put runners on the corners. However, a line out doubled off the pinch runner at first before a ground ball ended that threat.
Shawnee State also put two runners on in both the sixth and seventh innings, but could not push any runs across in its final two innings at bat.
Baseball will be on the road this Wednesday as the doubleheader with West Virginia Tech has been switched to a road twin bill. That doubleheader will get underway at 3 p.m. The Bears next MSC weekend will take them to Lindsey Wilson next Friday and Saturday.
