 MURRAY, Ky. – University of Evansville head coach Wes Carroll has frequently expressed the importance of freshmen not pitching like freshmen this season, and for the third game in a row, that was certainly the case as Austin Allinger delivered in impressive fashion, leading the Purple Aces to a 2-1 victory over Murray State at Johnny Reagan Field.
Allinger, who moved to 4-2 on the mound this season, was locked into a pitching duel for much of the contest, and aside from giving up a run in the third, he was unflappable. The right-hander out of West Chester, Ohio, tossed a career-best eight innings on the night while setting a career high with seven strikeouts. He allowed just four hits.
“As a freshman pitching at the Division I level, for him to come out here and pitch the kind of game he did is going to be big for his confidence,†Carroll said. “He took command of the game, and he had a good mix of pitches going too. You can tell with these freshmen that they’re no longer freshmen. They’re making big leaps and bounds, and it’s huge for our program to be able to develop such quality arms early in their career.â€
Allinger’s counterpart, Brad Boegel, was nearly as good in his time on the mound. A former weekend starter for the Racers last season, the senior struck out nine in six innings of work.
While Allinger may have been getting things done for UE on the mound, he received plenty of help from his battery mate in Boomer Synek. The senior catcher was excellent defensively, picking off a runner and catching another stealing, but his biggest moment of the game came in the top of the ninth with a two-out solo home run over the right field fence.
“I feel like I’m building more confidence with each inning,†Allinger said. “I knew that we’d eventually get the run we needed. I wasn’t worried about it, so I was just focused on trying to hang up goose eggs on the scoreboard each inning.â€
A two-out rally from the Racers in the bottom of the third put the hosts ahead as a Cody Gilbert walk and back-to-back singles from Adam Bauer and Tyler Lawrence scratched across the game’s opening score.
From there, the Aces line-up was held relatively quiet as Boegel started to find his groove, but that would prove only temporary as Trey Hair hit a triple off the top of the right field fence to lead off the seventh inning, and Synek followed up with a sacrifice fly to bring things even.
Following Synek’s ninth-inning blast, Brent Jurceka stepped to the mound for UE, and he was overpowering, striking out the first two hitters before a single up the middle by MSU’s Caleb Hicks put the tying run on first base. The threat wouldn’t be there long though, as Jurceka turned and picked him off to bring the game to an end and pick up his fourth save of the season.
UE will be back in action this weekend as they return to Charles H. Braun Stadium for a three-game set with Missouri Valley foe Bradley.
NOTES: UE has hit 32 homers in 31 games this season, which is already the best single season total since 2010 … With 15 career saves, Jurceka is now tied for fifth all-time in UE history, equaling former Aces Matt Brinkmann and Sam Johns … Since 1978, UE is 29-10 against Murray State … Last season, the Aces won both meetings between the two teams, taking home a 15-2 decision in Evansville before grabbing an 11-10 victory Murray … The Aces are 113-86-2 against schools from the state of Kentucky, which includes a 3-2 mark this season … UE is also 6-2 versus opponents that hail from the Ohio Valley Conference this year.
