EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Eastern Illinois baseball (15-11, 1-4 OVC) dropped their fourth Ohio Valley Conference game of the season after a 5-4 loss at SIUE (18-11, 4-4 OVC). The Panthers held a 4-1 advantage early but falter late in Edwardsville.
Logan Eickhoff had his third multi-hit game of the season after posting two singles in the loss. He also had the lone RBI for EIU.
Lincoln Riley also had two runs scored in the game.
Starting pitcher
Ky Matthews-Hampton (ND) threw in the first six innings for Eastern and allowed eight hits and four runs.
Colton Coca (L, 1-2) suffered the loss for the Panthers. Jake Bockenstedt (4-1) earned the win for SIUE.
QUICK STATS
Logan Eickhoff: 2-4, RBI
Lincoln Riley: 0-3, 2 R, BB, HBP
Ky Hampton: ND, 6.0 IP, 8 H, 4 R, K
Colton Coca: L (1-2), 1.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 K
Both teams got on the board early in the first with a 1-1 tie after one. The Panthers scored after Riley was hit by pitch and was brought around to third before a balk by Bockenstedt. SIUE tied the game with a Brady Bunten RBI single.
Eastern would take a 2-1 lead with an RBI single by Eickhoff in the top of the second. Hampton would escape the bottom of the second with back-to-back groundouts to end the inning with two runners on.
The scoring would continue for EIU in the third with two runs against Bockenstedt. After a Riley walk and a wild pitch, he would score on a failed pickoff attempt. Jared Evans would also score after the second balk by Bockenstedt.
Hampton allowed only two base runners between the third and the fifth inning before SIUE tied the game in the sixth. Ole Arntson (1), Josh Ohl (2) and John Stallcup (1) all had an RBI for the Cougars.
Coca would take over for the Panthers in the bottom of the seventh inning for Hampton. EIU would allow the deciding run in the seventh after an RBI single by Avery Owusu-Asiedu to put SIUE back up top 5-4.
Cole Gober would collect EIU's first hit in the top of the eighth since the fourth inning, but EIU failed to score. Chaney Trout got EIU out of a jam in the eighth with the bases loaded to keep Eastern down only a run.
The Panthers had a chance to tie the game in the top of the ninth after Eickhoff started the inning off with a single and was moved over to third after a sac bunt and a wild pitch. Hayden Cooper for SIUE managed to strikeout the final two batters to secure the win.
Eastern Illinois scored four runs on six hits with no errors. SIUE scored five runs on 11 hits with three errors. The Panthers and Cougars will play game three of their weekend series tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 p.m. For updates for to eiupanthers.com.
