~ Southeast rallied to defeat Morehead State 3-2 but then dropped the nightcap 14-4
The Morehead State baseball team was not the easy touch its record and statistics might have suggested.
Far from it as the Eagles claimed a split with Southeast Missouri State in the Ohio Valley Conference-opening doubleheader for both teams Sunday at Capaha Field.
The Redhawks scored two sixth-inning runs to capture the opener 3-2. MSU romped 14-4 in the finale.
"We were lucky to get a split," Southeast coach Mark Hogan said. "It took every ounce we had in the first game."
The series was trimmed from three games to Sunday's pair of seven-inning contests after Saturday's scheduled doubleheader was rained out.
Southeast, picked to finish second in the nine-team OVC, is 12-11. The Redhawks have lost five of their last seven games. MSU, tabbed for eighth, is 4-19.
"We're not playing well right now, but I've still got a lot of confidence in our club," Hogan said. "Give Morehead credit. They played outstanding today. They could have easily swept.
"You look at their record. ... It certainly didn't look like that kind of club. Based on what I've seen, I think they'll get their share of wins."
MSU entered the series with a 9.13 ERA, by far the the worst in the OVC. Opposing batters were hitting a robust .373 against the Eagles, whose most recent outing was Tuesday's 32-17 loss to Canisius.
Those statistics meant little Sunday as the Eagles received strong starts from Trey Smith in the opener and Garrick Whittle in the nightcap along with solid relief work.
Southeast, which was leading the league in runs scored, managed just six earned runs and 14 hits.
"I'm very pleased with the way we played," said MSU standout catcher Taylor Davis, who sparked the second-game rout with two home runs and a double. "We showed the team we can be. All of our pitchers threw very well."
The Redhawks trailed 2-1 entering the bottom of the sixth inning of the first game. They had been held to just one hit after the second inning.
Senior Tim Rupp singled with one out. Senior Blake Slattery singled and junior Kenton Parmley brought both runners home with a double to left-center field.
"I've been struggling and it's always nice to come through for the team," Parmley said. "To win that first conference game was big."
Southeast's pitching was stout in the opener. Senior left-hander Jordan Underwood worked into the sixth inning, allowing four hits and two runs. He struck out five, walked five and hit two batters.
Two lefty relievers were flawless to close out the win.
Junior college transfer Ryan Pickett (1-0) notched his first Southeast victory. He replaced Underwood in the sixth inning after a leadoff single and recorded three consecutive outs.
Senior Logan Mahon, primarily a starter last year after transferring from junior college, recorded his first Southeast save with a perfect seventh inning. He lowered his ERA to 1.57.
"Jordan pitched around some walks and did a good job," Hogan said. "Ryan did a great job in a real critical spot, and Logan just continued what he's been doing. He threw great."
Slattery and junior Taylor Heon both had two of Southeast's eight hits. The 6-foot-8 Smith allowed two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.
"We squeezed out a really good win," Hogan said. "Game two just went the other way."
Did it ever as the Eagles pounded six home runs among their 17 hits. They battered a pitching staff that entered the day leading the OVC with a 3.44 ERA. That mark is now 3.90.
"We lost a close game, but we came out in the second game ready to play," Davis said.
Southeast fell behind 10-1 after a seven-run fifth inning that featured back-to-back homers, a three-run shot by Eric Bainer and a solo blast by Austin Haney.
Nick Duff's two-run homer in the fourth inning put MSU up 3-0. Davis left the park in the sixth to make it 11-1. Travis Redmon's two-run shot in the seventh made it 13-2 and Davis hit his second homer later in the frame.
"They hit the ball around the park real well," Slattery said.
Senior Jon Dicus (2-1) suffered his first loss, allowing three runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out three and walked three.
Southeast's bullpen did nothing to stem the tide as four relievers combined to give up 11 runs and 11 hits, including five of the six home runs.
"Our pitchers weren't making bad pitches. I thought their hitters just did a good job," Parmley said.
Whittle, a 6-5 lefty, held the Redhawks to a run on two hits through five innings.
The Redhawks knocked out Whittle in the sixth as two singles and two walks brought in a run while leaving the bases loaded with one out.
But Southeast couldn't deliver on its chance to draw closer. Reliever Matthew Robertson got an infield pop fly and a ground ball as the Redhawks stranded the bases full and still trailed 11-2.
The Redhawks tacked on their final two runs in the seventh.
"Their lefty settled us down, and they just lit it up offensively," Hogan said.
Parmley had two hits in the nightcap. He was the only Southeast player to finish the day with three hits.
"Our offense is struggling right now, and their pitchers did a good job," Hogan said.
Southeast concludes a seven-game homestand Tuesday with a 5 p.m. first pitch against NAIA Mid-Continent.
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