Murfreesboro, Tenn. – After losing a tough game to Louisiana Tech on Friday, Middle Tennessee baseball looked to rebound on Saturday. Blue Raider starting pitcher Drew Horn had a solid game while getting good run support, but a disastrous ninth inning from its bullpen cost MTSU. LA Tech rallied for a seven-run ninth inning on its way to a 10-8 victory to lock up the series in Murfreesboro.
After a scoreless first inning from both teams, Louisiana Tech broke the tie with a solo home run from Garrison Berkley in the top of the second. Trey Hawsey singled, and then back-to-back walks issued from Drew Horn loaded the bases with one out.
Will Safford delivered with a two-run double down the right-field line that just passed by Hayden Miller, who was manning first base. Horn got the final two outs, but the Bulldogs had taken a 3-0 lead.
In the next half inning, Keaton Ray collected a one-out single. Kenny McKinley lined up the middle of the infield for what could have been a double play, but the Bulldog second baseman came off the bag, allowing both runners to be safe. MTSU looked to get some runs back, but a Matt Wolfe double play ended the inning while stranding both runners.
Both offenses were stagnant for several innings, but Middle finally got on the board in the sixth. Brett Vondohlen mashed a ball over the wall and nearly into the football stadium concourse, his 14th long ball of the season.
Although his pitch count was at 100, Horn came back out for the top of the seventh and sat down the Louisiana Tech offense on 11 pitches, bringing the MTSU bats back up.
That would end Horn's day as he left after seven innings, giving up three earned runs and striking out four Bulldogs.
A pair of Blue Raiders reached base to begin the bottom of the eighth after a pitch hit Ray, and McKinley walked on four consecutive balls. It looked like Middle Tennessee would squander another opportunity to get runs on the board after Matt Wolfe was out on a sacrifice bunt and Brett Rogers struck out.
But that’s when Miller came to the rescue, blasting a three-run tank over the left field wall to give MTSU its first lead of the ball game. The Blue Raiders threatened for more after Eston Snider and Clay Badylak reached base, but a Vondohlen strikeout ended the frame with Middle leading 4-3.
Cole Torbett relieved Horn of his duties on the mound in the top of the eighth and was dominant, striking out the side in order on 15 pitches.
Ray singled up the middle in the bottom of the frame, then advanced to second on a stolen base. Wolfe drove him in on a first-pitch hit, followed by a Rogers RBI single that scored Wolfe. Badylak delivered a few batters later with a two-run single through the right side of the infield to extend the MTSU lead to 8-3 and send the game to the ninth.
Trey Hawsey and Thaxton Berch reached base on errors before Torbett walked a batter to load the bases. Colton Coates unloaded them with a double that plated three runs, and Torbett would be pulled for Ollie Akens.
Akens walked Michael Ballard and then gave up a massive three-run home run to give Louisiana Tech the lead again, 9-8. Landen Burch would come into the game as the new Blue Raider arm but would allow an RBI single before getting the final out of the ninth.
The Middle Tennessee bats couldn’t extend the game and went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth to lock up a 10-8 loss, its seventh straight.
MTSU will return to Reese Smith Jr Field tomorrow for the final game against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. First pitch is at 1:05 p.m., and Chandler Alderman is the probable starting pitcher.
