CHARLESTON, Ill. – The Eastern Illinois baseball team (12-14, 4-2 OVC) picked up a convincing 14-8 win over Butler (10-18, 0-0 Big East) at Coaches Stadium on Tuesday afternoon. After going ahead in the bottom of the second, the Panthers possessed the lead for the remainder of the game.

The victory improved EIU's all-time record against Butler to 20-13 and snapped a brief two-game losing streak against the Bulldogs.

The Eastern bats picked up right where they left off over the weekend, as they piled up 14 runs on 12 hits. It was the fourth time in the last five games that the Panthers scored at least 14 runs.

Jake Ferguson led the team in hits, going 3-3 with a double and two RBIs while also scoring a pair of runs. Mike O'Conor was the only other EIU batter with multi-hit outing, going 2-5 with a home run and two RBIs.

Tyler Castro, Zak Goodwin, and Sam Wiese also recorded two RBIs each on the afternoon.

Christian Carew (2-1) picked up his second straight win after allowing no earned runs with a pair of strikeouts in a two-inning start. Eli Cartwright also had an effective outing, giving up no runs on just one hit with two strikeouts in two innings of relief.

Butler enjoyed their only lead of the ballgame in the first inning, as Harry Carr drove in two runs with a double after Danny Barbero had reached base on a two-out error.

However, EIU quickly erased the deficit with a Mike O'Conor two-run homer to right field in the bottom of the inning. It was O'Conor's team-leading fifth home run of the season, and his fourth in the last five games.

After Carew made quick work of the Bulldogs in the top of the second, the Panthers pounced into the lead with four unearned runs in their next at-bat, beginning with a Tyler Castro sacrifice fly that plated Brett Stanely.

Following a walk to load the bases, Zak Goodwin drove in two more runs with a bloop single to center field before a Jake Ferguson RBI base hit put EIU ahead 6-2.

Eastern extended their lead further in the fourth with a James Love RBI single before Ferguson made his way home on a wild pitch. The Panthers would score a third run in the frame on a Chris Worcester RBI walk with the bases loaded.

Both teams were held scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings before a high-powered Butler order found some life in the seventh. After a walk and hit by pitch to begin the inning, Jake Moroknek got BU back in the scoring column with an RBI single.

A Tommy Townsend base hit in the following at-bat scored two more runs before Jack Bello scored on a Keegan Conners fielder's choice later in the innings to make the score 9-6.

The Panthers answered back in the bottom of the seventh, as Quade Peters walked and stole second before scoring on a Jake Ferguson double, with Ferguson later scoring on a Brett Stanley sacrifice bunt.

After Nate Marshall and Kole Bradley combined to hold BU scoreless in the top of the eighth, EIU tacked on a few more insurance runs with a Tyler Castro RBI single that plated Ethan Rossi, and a pinch-hit two-RBI double off the bat of Sam Wiese.

Butler would score a pair of runs in the top of the ninth, but the rally fell well short, as Jack Potteiger recorded the final two outs of the game to secure the midweek win.

The Panthers will be back in action later this week with a home series against UT Martin. Game one is currently scheduled for Friday, April 4th at 3 p.m., but is subject to change based on the potential for inclement weather.