Trailblazers fall in final tune up ahead of big conference weekend

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Trailblazer baseball team finished off their Mid-West Athletic Conference (MWAC) bye week with a showdown against NJCAA Division I Kaskaskia College at Jerry Blemker Field Tuesday night and dropped the nine-inning game 13-6.

The Trailblazers looked to get a few players back from injuries and get their bullpen ready for a four-game conference series against Heartland College this weekend.

The Blue Devils jumped out to a big early lead after scoring three runs in the first, three runs in the second and two in the third to take an 8-0 lead.

Vincennes got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third inning in a big way with a two-run home run by sophomore Peyton Lane (New Paris, Ohio), who returned to the lineup after being in concussion protocol.

Vincennes would get another RBI by sophomore Josiah Sizemore (Cambridge City, Ind.) on a hit by pitch to cut the deficit to 8-3.

The two teams traded two-run innings in the fifth with VU scoring on a walk by freshman Jordan Roth (Delphi, Ind.) and a fielder’s choice by Sizemore.

Sizemore would pick up a third RBI on the day in the seventh with an RBI single to keep the Trailblazers within five runs of Kaskaskia.

The Blue Devils would add a pair of insurance runs in the ninth and come away with the 13-6 win over the Trailblazers.

Vincennes used 10 different pitchers Tuesday, as VU looked to get some of their relief pitchers time on the mound ahead of the return to conference play this weekend.

Freshman Jake Stuteville (Rockport, Ind.) took the mound to start the game for VU and was on a pitch limit as he is returning from injury. Stuteville retired one batter in the game and surrendered three runs on two hits.

Vincennes got some big outs on the mound from freshman Eli Steimel (Sullivan, Ind.) who threw one inning, while allowing four runs on three hits.

Freshman Nick Kapostasy (Cincinnati, Ohio) and sophomore Luke Osborn (Perrysville, Ind.) and Braedon Nichols (Sullivan, Ind.) combined to close out the final two innings of play for the Trailblazers.

The trio allowed two runs on two hits and struck out four batters on the mound for Vincennes.

“It starts on the bump and obviously we didn’t get it done with the first couple of guys that ran out there,” VU Head Baseball Coach Chris Barney said. “We had a couple of guys that still threw well; Steimel threw well, even though it doesn’t show up in the stats. Then towards the end Luke Osborn and Nick Kapostasy threw well.”

“We’ve got to do a better job on the mound,” Barney added. “Our guys have to get in the zone early instead of falling behind early and hopefully we can do that going forward.”

VU got a big day at the plate from freshman third baseman Colton Evans (Henderson, Ky.) who finished with four hits on five at bats, including a double and a run scored.

Sophomore Connor VanLannen (Clinton, Ind.) came away with three hits on the day, including a double and a pair of runs scored.

“Ethan Burdette (Linton, Ind.) did a great job in the lead-off spot to get three hits,” Barney said. “Peyton Lane had two hits and hit the last ball really well, it just got caught. Evans had four hits, Roth picked up an RBI and Josiah Sizemore had three RBI’s today.”

“We’ve got to continue that and hopefully start stringing it together and coming up with some timely hitting,” Barney added. “If we can do that, we will be very competitive.”

Vincennes look to make a strong return to MWAC Conference play this weekend as the Trailblazers travel to Bloomington, Ill. to face-off against Heartland College.

The Hawks currently sit on top of the MWAC Conference standings with a perfect 16-0 start to their conference schedule.

The first two games of the four-game series will be played on Friday, April 15, with the final two games set for Saturday, April 16. First pitch Friday is set for 3 p.m. eastern.

“We’ve got to get some quality starts out of our pitching,” Barney said. “That’s the bottom line. It all starts on the mound and that’s where those guys have to step up. Once they do, we will be pretty solid because we can swing it a little bit and we’ve played pretty decent defense, we didn’t play great defense tonight, but we’ve been pretty decent this season.”

“But it’s going to be a challenge, playing at Heartland,” Barney added. “A team that’s 16-0 right now in conference. It’s going to be a battle, so we’re looking forward to it.”