Box ScoreCAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The Eastern Illinois baseball team fell behind the Redhawks early for a second day in a row, but unlike in the series opener, the Panthers found a way to battle back. A big seven-run eighth inning gave the Panthers a 10-9 lead. EIU added an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning, but a three-run walk-off home run by SEMO's Chris Osborne allowed the Redhawks to steal the game away from the Panthers. The two teams will conclude their series tomorrow with a single game starting at 1 p.m.
Eastern Illinois suffered the heart breaking loss and falls to 5-29 (1-13 OVC), as Southeast Missouri improves to 25-10 (15-2 OVC).
Just like the series opener yesterday, the Panthers found themselves on the scoreboard first.
Joseph Duncan got the inning started with a double into the left center gap.
Cale Hennemann followed with a double of his own to score Duncan and give EIU an early 1-0 lead.
SEMO overtook the lead in the bottom half of the first inning scoring four runs in the frame. With runners on first and second Garrett Gandolfo hit a two-run double out in left center. After a walk and a deep fly out the Redhawks had runners on second and third with two outs in the inning. Scott Mitchell drove in two more runs for SEMO with a single to left and gave the Redhawks a 4-1 lead.
The Panthers cut into the SEMO lead with a run in the top of the second inning.
Hunter Morris doubled with one out in the inning and moved up to third on a wild pitch. Duncan singled to left to plate Morris and bring the score to 4-2.
The Redhawks responded with back-to-back scoring innings to extend their lead to 9-2 with one run in the second and another four-run inning in the third.
After being held without a run since the second inning, Eastern Illinois finally broke through in the top of the seventh.
Dane Toppel singled with one out and stole second to move into scoring position. After a strikeout, Hennemann stepped up to the plate with two outs in the inning. Hennemann found a hole in the right side of the SEMO defense and brought in Toppel.
The Hennemann hit in the seventh was the spark that Eastern Illinois needed as the Panthers exploded for seven runs in the top of the eighth to take a 10-9 lead. Following back-to-back singles by
Demetre Taylor and
Frankie Perrone,
Jason Scholl "took one for the team" and loaded the bases after being hit by a pitch.
Matt Dunavant came on as a pinch hitter and the move paid off in the Panthers' favor as Dunavant singled to center to score a pair. A SEMO error once again loaded the bases for EIU, but the bags would soon be cleared on a three-run triple by Duncan. An RBI single by Hennemann plated Duncan. The lineup turned over and brought Taylor back up for his second plate appearance of the inning. Taylor recorded his second hit of the inning to bring in Hennemann for the Panthers' seventh run of the inning.
Eastern Illinois would add an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning as
Nick Maton would triple over the head of the SEMO centerfielder for a one-out triple. Topple reached on an error by the SEMO shortstop that allowed Maton to score and extend the Eastern Illinois lead to 11-9.
After the Panthers' pitching staff held SEMO scoreless during the fourth through eighth innings, the Redhawks' bats came alive in the bottom of the ninth. With runners on first and second and one out in the inning Chris Osborne ended the game with a walk-off three-run shot over the wall in right center and gave the Redhawks the 12-11 win in game two of the three-game series.
Matt Wivinis took the tough loss on the mound allowing the three runs in 0.1 innings pitched.
Jason Euler,
Jake Haberer, and
Andy Fisher all recorded a scoreless inning of relief on the mound for the Panthers.
Duncan and Hennemann had a big day at the plate for EIU as both players recorded four hits each. Perrone ended the day 3-for-5, with Taylor going 2-for-5 marking the only other Panthers to record multiple hits in the game.
