Redhawks hitters maintain hot streak

~ The Redhawks scored in double figures in their second straight game.

The Southeast Missouri State baseball team scored in double figures for the second consecutive game and just the third time all season on Tuesday.

The Redhawks beat up on an Arkansas team for the second straight game, beating Central Arkansas 12-5 in a game that increased the team's winning streak to five games, a season-best.

Southeast (12-6) plays Central Arkansas again today at 2 p.m. in Conway, Ark., before kicking off Ohio Valley Conference play Saturday with a three-game weekend series against Tennessee-Martin.

The Redhawks' bats look healthy heading to conference play, as they have scored 31 runs in their last two games and 44 in their last four, which included a three-game sweep of Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The Redhawks had a six-run inning in the top of the seventh to turn a one-run game into a comfortable margin.

They never trailed in the contest while helping coach Mark Hogan notch his 367th victory for the program. He stands just six victories from tying Joe Uhls as the winningest coach in the program's history.

Southeast jumped to a 1-0 lead on the first pitch of the day, which Omar Padilla blasted over the left field fence.

The Redhawks added two more runs in the third inning when Dustin Pritchett's infield single scored Jim Klocke and the throwing error by the shortstop allowed Nick Harris to come in.

The Bears (9-10) scored a run in the third inning on Chris Nyborg's solo home run.

That was all they were allowed by starter Phillip Riley, who improved to 3-1 with five innings of three-hit pitching. Riley walked two and struck out six.

Central Arkansas scored an unearned run against Lance Rhodes in the sixth. A throwing error and a passed ball put Jonathan Ashworth in position to score on Kent Taylor's base hit.

Southeast erupted for six in the seventh, battering reliever Josh Charette for five hits and two walks. Asif Shah's bases-loaded double drove in two runs. With two outs and the bases loaded, Harris singled to drive in two runs.

Daryl Graham, hitting in the No. 4 spot after Matt Wagner left the game with a leg injury, added an infield RBI single. Harris scored on a wild pitch to cap the inning.

Southeast tacked on two more in the eighth -- Padilla and Klocke had RBI hits -- and another in the ninth.

Pritchett's solo homer in the ninth completed the day's scoring.

Pritchett and Matt Wulfers each had three hits for Southeast, and each scored two times. Padilla, Harris, Graham, Shah and Robby Moore also had multi-hit games.

Southeast slugged out 18 hits and took seven walks.

Riley, Rhodes and Josh Parham combined to allow nine hits and three walks.

Parham, from Jackson, pitched the final three innings, allowing four hits and one earned run.