Southeast Missouri State baseball team routs North Dakota

It took Trenton Moses a while to get going this year, which is not surprising after he missed virtually all of last season with a shoulder injury.

But lately there has been no stopping Southeast Missouri State's junior third baseman from Advance, Mo.

Moses capped a huge weekend Sunday with five hits as the Redhawks crushed North Dakota 15-0 at Capaha Field. Southeast (9-6) nabbed the series victory over UND (1-9), winning the final two games after dropping Friday's opener.

"It was a great all-around game for us," Moses said.

Moses went 5 for 5, including his first home run of the season, a double and three RBIs. He batted .786 in the series (11 for 14), raising his average to a team-leading .415.

Southeast Missouri State shortstop Kenton Parmley throws to first base to complete a double play after forcing North Dakota base runner Seth Means at second base during the sixth inning Sunday at Capaha Field. (Laura Simon)

That's a far cry from his 0 for 14 start to the season, which came after he played in only four games last year before suffering the shoulder injury that required surgery.

"I started off rough. It feels good to contribute," said Moses, a starter during his freshman and sophomore seasons. "It was awful last year, just sitting around and watching.

"I felt good this weekend. Hopefully it continues."

Southeast coach Mark Hogan said it was only a matter of time before Moses got going at the plate.

"He went through a tough deal last year, but he's a really hard worker," Hogan said. "I think he's really loving being back, having a chance to play again."

Southeast Missouri State coach Mark Hogan congratulates Tim Rupp on his fourth-inning home run Sunday against North Dakota at Capaha Field.

Moses was among a host of Redhawks to have big performances, including several local products.

Senior Brad LaBruyere, a Central High School graduate, pitched 6 1/3 innings to notch the victory in the longest outing of his collegiate career.

LaBruyere, who improved to 2-0, allowed four hits. He struck out two, walked one and hit two batters.

"Everything was working pretty well for me," said LaBruyere, who has been solid as a regular member of the starting rotation. "When you do that [pitch regularly], you can get yourself in a groove."

Said Hogan: "Brad got us started off pitching well, and then we got our offense going."

Southeast produced season highs of 24 hits and four home runs after entering the game with seven homers. The Redhawks had 47 hits and five home runs in the series as they raised their season batting average to .300.

"It was awesome," senior second baseman Tim Rupp said. "We played a great team game. It was fun to watch."

Rupp matched Moses in going 5 for 5 with his first home run of the season and two doubles. Rupp, who entered the day hitting .179, raised his average to .303.

"It feels good to get off getting out all the time," said Rupp. "It's about time I started making something happen."

Junior DH Brennan Malham, who played in just eight games last year due to an injury, ripped an eighth-inning grand slam. His first Southeast homer completed the day's scoring.

"It was exciting," said Malham, who also doubled and had five RBIs. "It jumped off the bat pretty well."

Junior shortstop Kenton Parmley also homered for the first time this year as he and Rupp went back-to-back in the fourth inning. Rupp's long ball was a two-run shot, followed by Parmley's solo blast that made it 5-0.

Senior center fielder Blake Slattery, another Central graduate, and junior first baseman Kody Campbell from Oran, Mo., both added two hits.

Parmley also added a double. Also getting two hits were senior right fielder Louie Haseltine and redshirt freshman reserve outfielder Cole Bieser, who recorded his first collegiate hits.

"We had a great day offensively," Hogan said.

Three pitchers followed LaBruyere to the mound.

Freshman Christian Hill worked a perfect inning, senior Corey Harness retired two batters while allowing a hit and senior Nick Thomas gave up a hit in the ninth.

"It's probably our best game in a long time here at Capaha," said Hogan, whose squad turned in several strong defensive plays, including a sliding catch by Slattery that saved at least one run and maybe more. "We almost played a perfect game."

The Redhawks begin a two-game series at Missouri State Tuesday with a 6:30 p.m. contest.