Southeast Missouri State baseball team loses first OVC series of season

The Tennessee Tech baseball team didn't want to relive the moment from last season when the Southeast Missouri State squad dogpiled in celebration of clinching the Ohio Valley Conference championship over them.

Instead it was the Redhawks who had a case of deja vu on Sunday.

Apart from a ninth-inning rally that fell short, Southeast's 11-10 loss in its final home game of the season was nearly identical to Saturday's game that featured a blown lead and a Golden Eagles relief pitcher that shut down the Redhawks.

Southeast would have clinched a share of the OVC regular-season title with a win Sunday.

"You look at the last two games we have leads, we play really good baseball through the first five innings, and then all of a sudden it's like we kick it in on cruise control," Southeast coach Steve Bieser said. "I don't think that happens as much from the player standpoint, it's just the energy in the dugout. I think when you walk into the dugout and everybody's just not really focused then what our players think is, 'Oh, this is in the bag,' and they don't have that energy and that motivation. I think it's just rubbing off on everyone.

Southeast Missouri State second baseman Jason Blum leaps after Tennessee Tech baserunner Jordan Hopkins was forced out during the second inning Sunday, May 3, 2015 at Capaha Field. (Fred Lynch)

"A lot of good things have happened this year, and I think when you start taking that for granted that it's always going to work out and happen that way that's when you get in trouble, so I think these are valuable. I hate losing, but I think these are some valuable lessons that if we want to we can learn from this and it could make us a better club in the long run. [It's that] in this game, in this league you have to play nine solid innings and you can't take anything for granted. *... We better learn something from these last two days."

The Redhawks trailed 11-6 going into bottom of the ninth inning after being shut out by TTU's regular closer Jeb Scoggins over the previous three innings.

Second baseman Jason Blum led off the ninth and reached on a throwing error by shortstop Dylan Bosheers. Center fielder Andy Lennington and right fielder Dalton Hewitt followed with one-out singles to load the bases.

After first baseman Ryan Rippee recorded the second out on a questionable called third strike, catcher Scott Michell sent a two-run single up the middle to trim the deficit to 11-8.

Reliever Trevor Maloney entered the game to face shortstop Branden Boggetto, who cleared the bases with a double off the wall in left-center that narrowly missed being a home run and made it 11-10. TTU's Trevor Coggins was brought in to pitch and coaxed a game-ending popup out of left fielder Brendon Neel.

"This team came in and wanted to beat us real bad," Boggetto said. "Every team's going to want to beat us, so we have to bring our A-game every day if we want to win."

The Redhawks held a 1-0 lead after one inning and regained a 3-2 lead in the second when third baseman Trevor Ezell launched a ball into left center with two outs that Tech center fielder David Allen dove and made the catch on before the ball popped out of his glove for a two-RBI double.

Blum extended Southeast's lead to 5-2 when he scored Rippee and Mitchell, who both walked, with a two-out single through the left side.

Lennington led off the fifth with his second double of the day to right, moved up to third on a wild pitch and scored on a Hewitt base hit to put the Redhawks up 6-2.

Southeast, which held a 5-2 lead after four innings in Saturday's game before being shutout the remainder of the game in an 11-5 loss, had just two base runners and no hits over the next three innings.

"You've got to put it on them no matter what the score is. You've got to continue to play hard," Lennington said. "I think that's the most important thing we've got to learn. *... You've got to continue to keep the throttle down at all times, and I just think we didn't really do that the last two games and it kind of came back to nip us in the butt, I guess."

TTU answered in the top of the sixth. Starting pitcher Alex Winkelman gave up back-to-back singles to start the inning before issuing a walk to load the bases.

He recorded a strikeout before a base hit up the middle cut the Redhawks' lead to 6-3.

Another run scored when Rippee made a diving stop on the first-base line and raced to the bag to retire the batter. It marked the end of the day for Winkelman, who exited with a 6-4 lead.

Redshirt freshman pitcher Matthew Wade replaced him and walked the first batter he faced to reload the bases before Allen crushed one over the wall in left for a grand slam to put TTU up 8-6.

"My biggest concern with the bullpen is we haven't found anybody that can come in in the middle of an inning and throw well," Bieser said. "If you let them start the inning they've been very good, but somebody coming in in the middle of an inning is really struggling. I don't know if it's the nerves or they're pressing that much to be so good and they don't want to give up somebody else's runs -- I don't know what they're thinking.

"Our pitchers coming out of the bullpen have to relax and throw quality pitches, and if they get beat on quality pitches, they get beat, but they're just pressing, they're missing the strike zone, getting behind and then they've got to come to the hitter, and that's when bad things are happening. We're definitely going to have to figure some things out in the bullpen and get that squared away because it's unfair to tell our starters you have to throw eight innings every time. *... They've got to feel like if they pitch a decent game, when they come out we're going to be able to hold the lead for them."

Wade issued a two-out walk and gave up a base hit but escaped undamaged in the seventh.

Allen hit a one-out triple down the left-field line and into the corner before three-hole hitter Bosheers was intentionally walked in the eighth. Allen scored when Rippee threw high to second, pulling Boggetto off the bag in an attempt to turn a double play, making it 9-6.

Chambers hit a solo shot in the top of the ninth and Allen drove in the final Golden Eagles run with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly before Southeast's rally in the bottom of the inning.

Wade (3-1) was tagged for the loss. He allowed five earned runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts over 2 2/3 innings. Winkelman allowed six earned runs on six hits with four walks and eight strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings.

Southeast dropped to 30-17 and 20-7 in the conference. It also marked the first OVC series loss of the season for the Redhawks. TTU improved to 22-23 and 13-11 in the league.

"You hope to do that, but we've got bigger dreams than just clinching the OVC regular season," Blum said about failing to clinch a share of the title at home. "We want to go to the tournament and win there. Go to a regional and win there. We don't limit ourselves, so it's never just, 'We can do this here now.' We're just trying to take each game by each game and play to the best of our abilities and come out with a win."

Southeast returns to action at Missouri on Tuesday before traveling to Terre Haute, Indiana, for a three-game series against Indiana State next weekend.

The Redhawks conclude the regular season with three OVC games at Belmont May 14 to 16.