After falling into an early three-run hole, the University of Evansville baseball team dug themselves out, taking the lead on the Missouri Valley Conference’s top team, Missouri State, at Hammons Field in Springfield, Mo. only to fall late, 6-5.

Aggressive base running by the Purple Aces set up the first tally of the game, as junior infielder Sam Troyer turned a lead-off single into the icebreaker on a wild pitch from MVC preseason pitcher of the year Dylan Coleman.

However, the Bears would answer right back on Evansville junior starting pitcher Alex Weigand, as Drew Milas drove in Hunter Steinmetz on a fielder’s choice, knotting the game at 1.

That’s the way it would stay until the third frame, when Missouri State put two on for John Pivitera, who sent a bounder past a diving senior first baseman Dalton Horstmeier, bringing in both runners, putting the Bears in the lead, 3-1.

In the fourth, Weigand would get in more trouble, putting two on for Matt Brown, who stroked an RBI single up the middle, putting MSU up 4-1.

However, the Aces would respond in the very next inning, as Dalton Horstmeier lifted a double down the left field line, and junior outfielder Troy Beilsmith came all the way around from first base to score, cutting the deficit to two, at 4-2.

Weigand would give way in the bottom of the inning to junior right hander Austin Allinger. For the day, the junior southpaw gave up four runs on six hits, while striking out one, giving up no walks in the process.

The Evansville bats would erupt in the sixth frame. First, Beilsmith would singled through the right side of the infielder to bring in sophomore infielder Craig Shepherd from third, cutting the Missouri State lead to 4-3. Next, freshman third baseman Tanner Craig lined an RBI single to left, scoring Beilsmith from third with the equalizer, making it 4-4. Kenton Crews would cap the three-run frame, driving in Horstmeier for the go-ahead tally, giving the Aces back the lead, 5-4.

Allinger cruised through the sixth frame. However, the seventh was another matter, as a lead-off double, then a throwing error on a pick-off attempt put Jeremy Eierman on third with no outs. Drew Milas would bring Eierman home on a sacrifice fly to center, knotting the game up at 5.

The bottom of the eighth began with Allinger walking the lead-off batter, which ended his day, as he gave way to sophomore left hander Nathan Croner. Croner walked the first batter he faced, then a sacrifice bunt Logan Geha moved the runners into scoring position. That set up John Privitera, who hoisted up a sky-high sacrifice fly to right, bringing in Matt Brown for the go-ahead score, 6-5 Missouri State.

Evansville went down in order in their final at-bat, to end the game.

The Aces fall to 6-17 on the season, the Bears improve to 20-7.

America’s Best Racing (ABR) announced today that season two of “The Winner’s Circle” national radio show and podcast will kick off this Saturday, April 7, on SB Nation Radio with featured guest Kirk Herbstreit, ESPN college football analyst and racehorse owner. The racing and betting variety show, which premiered in 2017, is hosted by Bram Weinstein and airs every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. ET through Breeders’ Cup on Nov. 3.

In 2017, “The Winner’s Circle” featured a number of high profile guests, including legendary sportscaster Brent Musberger; ESPN’s Kenny Mayne, Darren Rovell, Jeannine Edwards, and Chris “The Bear” Fallica; Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy; racing icons Bob Baffert, Mike Smith, and Gary Stevens; Food Network’s Monti Carlo; and HBO Real Sports’ Soledad O’Brien.

“We couldn’t have been more thrilled with the personalities who joined us in our first year, offering their personal insights on sports, media, pop culture, and any number of topics that America’s Best Racing highlights in an effort to engage with a savvy millennial audience,” said Stephen B. Panus, president of TJC Media Ventures. “We’re excited and looking forward to our second season — every week should be appointment listening.”

New for 2018 will be segments on bourbon featuring Wall Street Journal best-selling author Fred Minnick, feature reporting from former Grantland writer and author Dave Hill, and sports betting insights from Covers.com and ABR contributor Monique Vag. Returning for weekly segments in season two will be Churchill Downs and Fair Grounds paddock analyst Joe Kristufek. America’s Best Racing’s correspondent and handicapper Dan Tordjman will also deliver regular analysis and commentary.

Show sponsors for 2018 include West Point Thoroughbreds, which will present the “Race Call of the Week,” STATS Race Lens, Horseplayers.com, and the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program.

“The Winner’s Circle” can be heard on more than 80 national radio stations in cities including Houston, Dallas, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Detroit, as well as sbnationlive.com and the SB Nation Radio app. Subsequent to the airing of each radio show, a podcast version will be made available at podcastarena.com/winners-circle.