Photo Gallery (by Sandy King)

CHARLESTON, Ill. – The Eastern Illinois baseball team (19-17, 9-5 OVC) defeated Tennessee Tech (24-16, 9-6 OVC) by a score of 6-1 on Friday afternoon to complete the series sweep. It was the Panthers' first sweep of the season.

The win moves EIU's all time record against TTU to 46-45, and it is the first time the Panthers have swept the Golden Eagles since 2019. 

All six of EIU's runs were earned as they out-hit TTU nine to six. Chris Worcester and Jake Ferguson led the Eastern offense with two hits apiece, with Ferguson also posting a team-leading two RBIs. A total of seven Panthers recorded hits in the contest.

It was a masterful pitching performance from EIU starter Tyler Kapraun, who picked up his third win of the season after allowing just one run on three hits with five strikeouts through six complete innings.

After neither team could generate much offense in the first two innings, Eastern broke into the scoring column with three two-out runs in the third.

Chris Worcester got things started with a one-out single to right center before moving to second on a Tyler Castro groundout. After Worcester moved up 90 more feet on a wild pitch, Mike O'Conor was walked to put runners at the corners.

With two outs and two on, Joey Hagen picked up where he left on Thursday with a double to right center that scored both runners. Brett Stanley then tacked on another run with an RBI base hit to put the Panthers up 3-0.

Eastern extended their lead in the fourth with a Quade Peters RBI single, and after Tyler Kapraun threw his fifth scoreless inning of the game, the Panthers added two more runs with a Ferguson bases loaded double to open up a commanding 6-0 edge.

Kapraun's first and only real test of the game came in the sixth, when after two quick outs to start the inning, four consecutive Tech batters reached base, four of them on walks. However, after Eddie Garza earned a free pass to drive in TTU's first run of the game, Kapraun punched out the next batter with a swinging strikeout to escape the jam with minimal damage.

The Golden Eagles loaded the bases again with two outs in the seventh, but EIU pitching again answered the call, with Eli Cartwright taking charge to get the last out of the inning without allowing a run.

The game's last two innings were mostly uneventful, with both teams combining for just two hits and no runs as Nate Marshall salted away the game on the mound to complete the massive three-game sweep.

The Panthers will now turn their attention to a pair of midweek contests against Butler and Illinois Wesleyan, as they will face the Bulldogs in Indianapolis at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday before hosting the Titans on Wednesday at 3 p.m.

EIU will continue conference play next weekend at Southern Indiana, with game one set for Friday, August 25th at 6 p.m. in Evansville.