Middle Tennessee baseball picked up a massive win on Friday to give them momentum and get back in the race to make the CUSA Tournament. They’d get two more cracks to make up ground in a Sunday doubleheader against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. While both games were competitive, the Blue Raiders could not win either, moving to 0-8 in conference play.

Game 1

Colin Kerrigan was hit hard to begin the game. Drew Collins collected a leadoff walk followed by back-to-back base hits, including a two-run double by Ace Williamson to give the Gamecocks an early lead. Two batters later, Grayson Ashe picked up an infield single that plated Williamson and extended the JSU lead to 3-0. Kerrigan would retire the final two batters of the frame on a lineout and strikeout to bring up the Blue Raider bats.

Middle Tennessee had an early mountain to climb, but it got to work quickly in the bottom of the first inning. Eston Snider picked up a leadoff single to put speed on the bases. Middle wouldn’t need his speed as Tyler Minnick came up with one out and blasted a two-run home run to cut the lead. A Keaton Ray two-out double would extend the inning, but a punchout of Matt Wolfe ended the first with Jax State leading 3-2.

Kerrigan started the third inning strong, striking out Williamson. But a walk and a fielding error by Wolfe quickly put a pair of Gamecocks on with one out. Silas Johnson got behind in the count at 0-2 but delivered with an RBI single into shallow center field to extend the lead, 4-2.

After a quick fourth inning, Kerrigan returned to the mound in the fifth to try and post another scoreless frame. He retired the first two batters by way of a strikeout and groundout, but then surrendered a walk to Ashe and a double to put a pair of runners in scoring position. He would be pulled for Ollie Akens after 4 2/3 innings of solid baseball, giving up three earned runs.

True freshman Matthew Cash came up to bat and delivered with a two-run single through the middle of the infield to give Jax State a comfortable 6-2 lead.

The bottom of the sixth was a quiet one aside from Brett Vondohlen’s solo home run, his 16th of the year, to trim the deficit. Heading into the final inning of the first game today, the Blue Raiders were down by three runs with very little time left.

Jax State went on a tear in the top of the seventh, scoring five runs on four hits to all but end this ballgame. Middle Tennessee had three outs to work with in the bottom of the frame, down 11-3. Brett Rogers did collect a one-out walk, but that would be all, as Hayden Miller and Cooper Clapp recorded outs to end the game. MTSU dropped this one 11-3 but had a chance to take the series with the game 2 starting 30 minutes later.

Game 2

MTSU star pitcher Drew Horn was a last-second scratch for the Blue Raiders, so Landen Burch would take his spot. The right-handed pitcher started the game off strong with back-to-back outs but would surrender a solo home run to Ace Williamson, giving Jax State the early lead. He would bounce back and force Brady Thomas to fly out, ending the frame.

Rogers led off the bottom of the third with an infield single to the shortstop, and then Snider collected a hit into right field to put runners at the corners. Clay Badylak came up to the dish looking to even things or give his team the lead. While he flew out to deep right field, it allowed Rogers to stroll home and tie us at one apiece.

After giving up the lead in the third, Jax State rebounded in the top of the fourth with an Ashe solo homer that landed in the second deck of the concourse at Floyd Stadium.

The gamecock lead was short-lived as Minnick led off the bottom of the inning with a single. Kenny McKinley was hit by a pitch two batters later, then Rogers laced a single through the left side of the infield to plate the backstop. A pitch hit Miller to load the bases with Snider coming up to the dish with two outs. The center fielder battled toughly, and it paid off with a payoff pitch walk to score another run, giving MTSU its first lead of the day.

Cooper Blauser bunted for a single to begin the fifth, then advanced to second and third on swiped bags. Burch would get Colton Hegwood to ground out, but Blauser came home to tie the rubber match at three runs.

Heading into the sixth, Burch would be pulled for Ethan Imbimbo after five innings of good work on the mound. Imbimbo would go just four batters before being pulled for Will Jenkins. With runners at the corners, Jenkins stood firm and forced a flyout on five pitches to end the threat.

That would not be the same the next inning as Blauser drew a walk, followed by a Hegwood RBI double to put JSU up 4-3.

With the momentum completely switched and the Blue Raiders down to their last three outs, MTSU needed to make something happen fast. Miller stepped into the batter’s box as the first Blue Raider of the frame. He worked the count full, then obliterated a baseball over the left-center field wall to tie things for the fourth time today.

That’s all Middle Tennessee could get, but it was enough to even things at 4-4 and give us free baseball at Reese Smith Jr Field for the second time this series.

The eighth inning was an absolute mess for MTSU. Jax State plated four runs, but they were all unearned due to fielding errors from the Blue Raider defense. It started with Miller dropping a throw at first base, which led to a runner scoring. Carson Hornung followed that with an RBI sac-fly to extend the lead 6-4.

Then, a simple double turned into a two-run little league home run after an errant throw passed second base and out of the field of play. Middle would eventually get out of the frame, but they now faced a four-run deficit heading into the bottom of the eighth.

The Blue Raider offense would get two runners on, but it was useless. McKinley grounded into a double play, then Brett Rogers grounded out to end the game as MTSU fell in extra innings 8-4.

Middle Tennessee will return to the diamond this Tuesday as they take on the Lipscomb Bisons in Nashville. First pitch from Dugan Field is scheduled for 6 p.m.