EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Eastern Illinois (21-20, 11-13 OVC) split the doubleheader against SIUE (20-19, 10-11 OVC). The Panthers managed a 15-10 victory in game two of the series, capped off by a
Trey Sweeney grand slam in the ninth inning.
Ryan Ignoffo claimed his third win of the season after pitching three innings and allowing only one hit and one run with five K's. EIU fell in the second game, 7-5 to the Cougars.
QUICK HITS
GAME TWO
Knernschield got the Panthers started with a deep fly to left field in the first inning, the third of his career.
Gunner Smith followed in the second inning with his homer over the left-field fence to grow the Panther lead to 2-0 early in the game.
The Panthers added another two runs after a double from Sweeney and a homer from Pena to put the lead at 4-0 in the top of the third.
The Cougars battled back, putting up four runs off four hits in the bottom of the third to tie the game back up.
EIU started another rally in the fourth, adding three runs off two hits and three walks to put the recapture the lead 7-4.
The Panthers added two more from a lead-off single from Lynch Jr. that was followed by a Doyle double to put Panthers on second and third. Knernschield added two more RBI after singling up the right side as Eastern Illinois grew their lead to 9-5.
The Cougars charged back, adding four runs and tying the game up 9-9 in the sixth. Ignoffo entered to pitch in the seventh inning for the Panthers in relief for
Ky Hampton.
Eastern Illinois took the lead back in the eighth inning after an Ignoffo double scored Knernschield to put the score at 10-9 in favor of EIU.Â
The top of the ninth was a big one for the Panthers as Toppel reached on an infield single. Toppel promptly stole second, third, and home to put EIU on top 10-9. Eastern Illinois kept the two-out rally going, with Doyle singling to right field and Knernschield drawing a walk to load the bases for Sweeney. Sweeney added to his RBI total with a grand slam to put him in the EIU record books with the ninth-most RBI in a single season with 56. The Panthers claimed a big 15-9 lead heading into the final half-inning of the game.
Ignoffo closed out the game after allowing a solo homer, his only hit in the outing, as he gained his third win of the season. Panthers won 15-10.
GAME THREE
The Cougars got off to a hot start after two home runs in the first inning put EIU in the hole, 3-0.
The Panthers battled back in the fourth inning, scoring three runs. Doyle started the inning with a single to right followed by and Knernschield hit-by-pitch. Ignoffo walked to load the bases for Pena, who pulled a ball into deep left for a sacrifice fly to put EIU on the board.
Tarron Lawson singled to score two runners and put runners on the corners. The Panthers scored their last run of the inning in a strange fashion, as Lawson got caught in a pickle but managed to keep it going long enough to allow Ignoffo to touch home and tie up the ballgame 3-3.
SIUE took the lead in the bottom of the sixth with a two-run homer over the left-field fence to put the score at  5-3. The Cougars grew their lead to 7-3 heading into the final inning.
Eastern Illinois started a rally in the ninth started by Pena. Pena slapped a single into left field, followed by a Lawson double to put runners on second and third.
Lucas DiLuca pushed Pena home with a groundout to second. Lawson scored on a wild pitch to the backstop, but the Panthers rally was cut short as EIU dropped the final game of the series 7-5.
ON DECK
Eastern Illinois will host Austin Peay for the final home OVC series next weekend. Game one will be on Friday, May 7, starting at 3 p.m.
