The University of Southern Indiana baseball team lost a heartbreaker in 10 innings to Quincy University, 5-4, Friday morning to start the Great Lakes Valley Conference Baseball Tournament at U.S. Baseball Field in Ozark, Missouri. USI, the third seed from the GLVC East Division, watched its record go to 29-20 overall, while Quincy goes 36-15.
The Screaming Eagles move into the loser’s bracket and will have to win Friday to continue in the 2018 post-season. USI will play the loser of today’s 7:30 p.m. contest between the top seed from the East and number-two ranked, University of Illinois Springfield, and the fourth-seed from the West, Missouri University of Science & Technology, Friday at 12:30 p.m.
The Eagles allowed a two-run first by the Hawks before rallying to tie the score, 2-2, in the top of the second. USI junior catcher Logan Brown (Mt. Vernon, Indiana) and freshman shortstop Ethan Hunter (Terre Haute, Indiana) pushed both of the Eagle runs across with RBI-singles.
Quincy bounced back to regain the lead, 3-2, in the fourth with a home run off of USI junior right-handed starter Austin Krizan (Mt. Vernon, Indiana). Krizan got a no decision after allowing three runs on seven hits, while striking out four in six-plus innings of work.
USI rallied in the ninth to take its first and only lead of the contest, 4-3, when junior pinch-hitter Jayden Beshears (Evansville, Indiana) crushed a two-run double off the left center wall. The Hawks, however, sent the teams into extra frames and score tied, 4-4, with a two-out run in the bottom half of the inning off of USI senior right-handed reliever Nick Coudret (Newburgh, Indiana).
Quincy would get the 5-4 win one inning later when the Hawks touched Coudret for a one-out triple and senior right-hander Kyle Griffin (Morganfield, Kentucky) for a winning-run scoring sacrifice fly. Coudret (6-3) got the tough luck loss after going 3.1 innings, allowing two runs on three hits and striking out five.
The Eagles had their chances to get command of the game, stranding 14 runners on-base and two runners on in six of the 10 frames, including the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth.
Continuing coverage of Eagles baseball games this post-season can be found on GoUSIEagles.com. Watch Twitter, Facebook, and GoUSIEagles.com for any schedule changes due to weather.
