Racers Take Game One Against Morehead State

Thursday, May 19

Reagan Field

6 p.m.

Murray State

26-28, 14-14

Morehead State

30-24, 16-12

Morehead State

Murray State

Photo by: David Durr

5/19/2016 9:43:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

In a must-win game for the Murray State baseball team Thursday night at Reagan Field, the Racers opened their series against Morehead State with a 10-3 victory, thanks in large part to a five-run eighth inning.

Tyler Lawrence led the Racers (26-28, 14-14 OVC) at the plate by going 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs while Caleb Hicks also had two ribbies in the win. Kipp Moore went 2-of-2 at the dish and scored three runs while Adam Bauer also added a pair of runs and recorded his eighth triple of the season.

Ryan Dills got the win in the start for MSU as he pitched a career-high eight innings and allowed just three runs while walking none and striking out six Eagles. Derrik Watson came on and pitched a scoreless ninth.

MSU opened the scoring on the night a pair of runs in the bottom of the second. After Moore and Jack Hranec led off the inning with back-to-back walks, a Tyler Dixon single through the left side of the infield brought home Moore for the early 1-0 lead. The next at-bat a Nick Moore RBI groundout made it 2-0.

A three-run home run from Morehead's (30-24, 16-12 OVC) Alex Stephens in the third was the only damage done by the Eagles as they took their lone lead of the game at 3-2. The Racers would respond however in the bottom half of the frame as Hicks' double down the left field line scored Kipp Moore and Ramsey Scott and put the Racers back in front 4-3.

In the fifth, Lawrence got an RBI single to left field to push the lead to 5-3 before a scoreless sixth and seventh for both squads. MSU exploded then in the eighth, thanks in part to some defensive miscues by the Eagles.

A Reed Thompson pinch hit RBI brought home Moore for the third time and made it 6-3. An Aaron Bence single through the infield pushed the lead to 7-3 before Cody Gilbert would score on an error by Morehead. Lawrence would then double to left to score a run making it 9-3 and would later come home on a wild pitch to push the edge to 10-3.

The Eagles out-hit the Racers in the contest 13-10 and would also leave twice as many stranded on base, 12-6. The Racers however were able to get the crucial hits in the game as they went 6-of-16 with runners in scoring position while Morehead was just 2-of-13.

Game two of the series is Friday at Reagan Field at 6 p.m. It will be another must-win game for MSU if it wants to make the OVC Tournament as the Racers must sweep the Eagles in the final two games of the series due to Tennessee Tech's two victories today over Eastern Kentucky.