The 22nd-ranked University of Southern Indiana baseball team completed a four-game and doubleheader sweep of University of Indianapolis on Senior Day, 5-0 and 15-10, Monday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI watched its record go to 29-16 overall and 19-5 in the GLVC, while UIndy goes to 25-21, 9-15 GLVC.
The Screaming Eagles end the day with a one-game lead in the GLVC East Division and four games to play in the 2017 conference regular season. Bellarmine University (31-15, 18-6) follows USI by one game in second, while the University of Illinois Springfield (29-17, 17-7 GLVC) trails by two games in third. USI holds the tie-breaker with Illinois Springfield, while Bellarmine holds the tie-breaker over the Eagles.
The Screaming Eagles cruised to a 5-0 shutout victory in the opener. USI scored three in the first before sealing the victory with a tally in both the second and sixth frames.
USI junior third baseman Sam Griggs (Evansville, Indiana) ignited the Eagles’ offensive attack in the first inning with a two-run single and scoring for the 3-0 lead. Griggs finished the opener two-for-three with two runs scored and two RBIs.
The complete-game shutout victory went to junior right-handed starter Kyle Griffin (Morganfield, Kentucky). Griffin (5-3) scattered three hits and a walk, while striking out nine over the seven innings of work.
In a marathon slugfest in the second game, Griggs and junior leftfielder Drake McNamara (Mt. Vernon, Indiana) combined for eight RBIs as the Eagles defeated the Greyhounds, 15-10.
Griggs, who finished the day with six RBIs in the two games, contributed a total of seven runs in the nightcap, scoring three times and driving in the four RBIs. McNamara’s bat exploded for three hits, two runs, four RBIs, a double, and his team-best eighth home run of the year in game two.
The Eagles, as a team, scored two in the first, three in the third, one in the fourth, seven in the fifth, and two in the eighth for their 15 runs. The Greyhounds tried to rally in the last four innings, shrinking a 10-run Eagles’ lead to five, before senior right-hander Justin Watts (Bryan, Ohio) got the final out for his team-best seventh save of the season.
On the mound, sophomore right-hander Austin Krizan (Mt. Vernon, Indiana) went six innings to get his fourth victory of the season. Krizan (4-1) allowed five runs on six hits and two walks, striking out two.
The Eagles conclude the 2017 regular season on the road May 5-7 when they visit Saint Joseph’s College for the final time. First pitches Friday and Saturday are set for 3 p.m., while Sunday doubleheader is slated for noon.
