ROBINSON, Ill. – The Vincennes University Trailblazer baseball team took a short trip north to Robinson for another mid-week showdown with the Statesmen Tuesday afternoon.

Vincennes gave up one big inning to host Lincoln Trail, where three fielding errors led to a big six-run inning for the Statesmen.

VU attempted a comeback but ultimately fell short as Lincoln Trail came away with the 12-7 win.

The Statesmen came into the game looking for some revenge against the Blazers after VU picked up the 5-4 win in 10 innings April 19 at Jerry Blemker Field.

Lincoln Trail got started early, scoring a run in each of the first two innings to grab the early 2-0 advantage.

Lincoln Trail grabbed control of the game in the bottom of the third, when the Statesmen scored six runs on three hits in the inning, while VU surrendered three errors and walked one batter.

Vincennes looked to close the gap in the fourth, with sophomore Peyton Lane (New Paris, Ohio) and freshman Colton Evans (Henderson, Ky.) leading off the inning with back-to-back doubles.

Evans would come around to score later in the inning on a ground out to cut the deficit to 8-2.

LTC grew their lead back with a pair of runs in the fourth and a run in the fifth before Vincennes scored again in the seventh.

Sophomore Josiah Sizemore (Cambridge City, Ind.) hit a double and scored on a wild pitch. Freshman Mahkai Pelzer (Douglasville, Ga.) reached on an error and would score on an RBI single by freshman Will Egger (Terre Haute, Ind.)

The Statesmen responded with a run of their own in the bottom of the seventh to take a 12-4 lead.

VU looked to mount a massive late comeback in the ninth, with Pelzer, Egger and sophomore Colin Long (Evansville, Ind.) leading off the inning with three-straight singles.

Colton Evans would drive in a run on an RBI single and freshman Nick Kapostasy (Cincinnati, Ohio) followed him with a sacrifice fly to cut the margin to five.

This would be as close as VU would get though as the comeback attempt fell short with Lincoln Trail picking up the 12-7 win on their home field.

“You give up a big inning and give up six runs, four of them unearned and it’s hard to overcome those crooked numbers,” VU Head Baseball Coach Chris Barney said. “Our guys battled back. We got ourselves back into the game. But we’ve got to do a better job right from the start and not allow so many free bases. A couple free bases and three errors in that inning and all of a sudden you give up six runs in an inning and that’s a tough obstacle to overcome.”

VU had four multi-hit games at the top of their order Tuesday, with Long, Lane and Evans each coming up with two hits, including doubles by Lane and Evans and Evans picking up a pair of RBI’s.

Will Egger entered the game in the seventh to take over behind the plate and recorded two singles in two plate appearances, while also coming away with an RBI.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball could not hold off Kentucky Wesleyan College Tuesday evening, falling 11-7, at the USI Baseball Field on Tri-State Hot Stove League Night. The Screaming Eagles go to 15-26 overall, while the Panthers are 18-24.
 
USI spotted KWC a 3-0 lead to start the contest before exploding for six unanswered runs for a 6-3 advantage. The Eagles started scoring in their half of the first inning when senior shortstop Ethan Hunter (Terre Haute, Indiana) hit a two-run blast to cut the deficit to 3-2.
 
The round-tripper was Hunter’s third home run of the season and 17^th of his career. The 17 home runs is tied for 10^th all-time in USI history.
 
The Eagles knotted the game, 3-3, in the bottom of the second on a sacrifice fly by junior centerfielder Evan Kahre (Evansville, Indiana) before taking the lead, 6-3, with a three-run eruption in the third.
 
USI sophomore first baseman Michael Conner (Moline, Illinois) kicked off the scoring in the third with an RBI-single for the Eagles’ fourth tally of the game. Sophomore designated hitter Daniel Lopez (Dominican Republic) highlighted the frame with a two-run triple off the left field wall to post the fifth and sixth runs.
 
After KWC closed the gap with a tally in the fourth, the Eagles regained the three-run advantage, 7-4, with a tally in the fifth when Lopez crossed the plate on an RBI-triple by sophomore third baseman Tyler Wheeler (Sellersburg, Indiana).
 
The Panthers, however, were not done, rallying to close the gap with a pair of runs in the sixth and took the lead for good, 11-7, with a five-run eighth. KWC would strand three Eagles on base in the final two innings to get the win.
 
On the mound, freshman right-hander Tyler Hutson (Villa Hills, Kentucky) took the loss in relief. Hutson (1-2) allowed two runs on one hit and two walks, while striking out one.
 
Up Next for the Eagles:
USI finishes the homestand and the 2022 home schedule April 29-May 1 when it hosts Missouri University of Science & Technology for Alumni Weekend and Senior Day. The 2010 NCAA Division II national championship team will be recognized prior to the April 30 doubleheader. 
 
The Eagles have a 25-8 all-time series lead with Missouri S&T. The two teams have not met since 2019 when they split four games, while USI has won seven of the last nine since 2015.
 
The Miners are 17-19 overall and 5-11 in the GLVC after being swept by the University of Illinois Springfield at home this weekend. Missouri S&T travels to Pittsburg State University Wednesday before visiting USI next weekend.
 

Game time set for 5 p.m. on Wednesday

 

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Missouri Valley Conference seeding and a series victory is on the line on Wednesday when the University of Evansville softball team welcomes Indiana State to Cooper Stadium for a 5 p.m. game.  The teams split a doubleheader last Wednesday in Terre Haute and both have an 8-12 league mark entering the game, which will be carried on ESPN+.

 

Last Time Out

– Things turned around quickly over the course of the weekend for the Purple Aces in their series at Bradley; after dropping the opener by a 10-1 final, UE stormed back to split Saturday’s doubleheader with a 7-3 win before taking a 6-3 decision on Sunday to clinch the series

– Sydney Weatherford recorded both wins in the circle, allowing three earned runs in 14 innings of work

– Alexa Davis paced the offense in the two wins over the Braves, accumulating three RBI in each contest

Three in a Row

– Freshman Sydney Weatherford was a perfect 3-for-3 in the circle last week, earning three conference wins

– After helping UE rebound in game two at Indiana State, Weatherford won the final two contests of the road series at Bradley

– In 21 innings, she accumulated a 1.33 ERA while walking just two batters

– The effort against the Sycamores lowered her season ERA to 2.73, which is 6th in the MVC

– She had the best start of her career at Loyola, throwing a 2-hit shutout while tossing her fourth complete game in the last five starts

Raising the Bar

– Over the course of the last week, Alexa Davis is batting .437 with nine RBI, four doubles and a total of seven hits in 16 at-bats

– Davis recorded three RBI in each of the two UE wins over the Braves

– She provided one of the biggest hits of the season on April 20 at Indiana State, connecting on a 2-run home run in the 5th inning of the 3-2 win

– Davis completed the doubleheader against the Sycamores with four hits in seven at-bats

– In the series finale against UNI, she was 2-3 with two doubles, two runs scored along with a walk and steal to help the Aces take a 6-3 win

– Her season average checks in at .279

Run Rule

– Over the last four games, senior Mackenzie McFeron has posted five hits in 11 at-bats while scoring a total of 10 runs

– Her efforts have been pivotal in UE going 3-1 over that span

– Through the opening 20 games of the MVC slate, she leads the team with a .327 batting average and her efforts in conference have seen her season average rise to .291

– She had the first 3-hit game of her career in the April 10 finale at Illinois State

– McFeron has 12 RBI in her career with nine of them coming in 2022