EVANSVILLE – Strong pitching and an equally potent line-up proved too much for visiting Wichita State on Sunday afternoon as the Aces picked up a run-rule-shortened 11-1 victory at Charles H. Braun Stadium.
The Aces (17-13) have now won three consecutive series, and the 10-run loss represented the first time WSU (11-21) had been run-ruled in any game since a trip to Braun Stadium in 2014.
The prowess of Alex Weigand on the mound was an eye-opener as the freshman southpaw was able to keep Shockers hitters guessing, striking out seven over six innings on the way to improving to 3-1 on the mound. He allowed just one run on six hits, and the win comes on the heels of fellow freshman Brandon Gomer’s victory a day prior.
“After the way we played Friday, it was great to get two great starting pitching performances from freshman on Saturday and Sunday,†UE head coach Wes Carroll said. “Alex did not look like a freshman on the mound today. He was in complete control, and it was just an overall great outing from him today.â€
“Alex was very effective all day, and he had a lot of command,†added UE catcher Boomer Synek. “When Weigand does that, he can give guys a hard time. He keeps the guys off balance and guessing, and his fastball has a lot of life on it too. He was making the hitters really uncomfortable, and it’s always great to get a performance like that on a Sunday.â€
Weigand certainly received a lot of help at the plate as well, beginning with a five-run two-out rally in the third. Eric McKibban got it started with an RBI single to center, and Jeff Christen crossed home on a wild pitch to double the advantage before Synek hammered a three-run blast over the right field fence.
“I thought it could be out when I hit it, but you never really know here at the Braun,†Synek said of his homer. “I knew I had good contact with it, and I had a feeling that it had the distance, so I just put my head down and kept running.â€
Synek ended the day 2-for-4 with four RBI, and McKibban was also 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI.
A passed ball and Christen single in the fourth resulted in another run, and Trey Hair followed up an inning later with a solo home run to left to make it 7-0.
After WSU reclaimed a score in the sixth, back-to-back doubles from Stewart Nelson and McKibban re-established the seven-run cushion, but UE wasn’t finished yet. Synek and Josh Jyawook would each single home another score before a Tyler Jones wild pitch allowed Synek to score and bring the game to its premature end.
The Aces will return to non-conference action on Tuesday with a trip to Murray State before returning to Braun Stadium next weekend for a three-game set with MVC foe Bradley.
NOTES: Overall the Aces have 31 homers this season, the most for any UE team since 2010 … Trey Hair has actually hit six home runs this season, but only five count as the junior’s blast at IU was wiped out before the game could become official … Since 1978, UE is 29-57 against Wichita State … Last season, the Aces were swept in Wichita, but UE picked up two out of three in the Shockers’ last trip to Evansville in 2014 … The first meeting between the two squads was in 1995, the first year that UE was in the MVC … UE dropped three of four games that season before eliminating the Shockers from the Valley tournament … The first series win for UE was in 2005 … Since 1978, the first season that UE participated in NCAA Division I baseball, WSU is the only team from Kansas that the Aces have played … All-time, the Aces are 8-14 in MVC openers and 34-37 in MVC opening series … This weekend marks the third time that UE started conference play with WSU … Previously, the Shockers took three out of four in both 1995 and 2002.
