EVANSVILLE, Ind. – After falling behind early, the University of Evansville baseball team exploded for 16 unanswered runs on Friday night, as the Purple Aces cruised to an 18-5 victory over the visiting Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium in Evansville.
“Tonight was an overall great effort by our team,†said UE head coach Wes Carroll. “Our offense really picked us up, as throwing up 18 runs on a Friday is not easy to do. We had quality at-bats up and down our lineup, but it really starts with our lead-off man Mark Shallenberger. He had five quality at-bats in six trips to the plate, and lined out in his only time he didn’t reach base. He was locked in tonight.
“I also thought that the job that Ethan Bell tonight was huge. For him to come in and put up goose eggs was really key for us not only tonight, but to set up our pitching for the rest of the weekend with it being a four-game series. I am just really proud of the effort all the way around tonight.â€
Evansville jumped up early, as graduate third baseman Brent Widder launched a two-run home run to left-center field two batters into the first inning to give UE a 2-0 lead. Purdue Fort Wayne was able to rally for a run in the second inning and four in the third inning to grab a 5-2 lead, but the lead would be short-lived.
Evansville rallied for four runs in the bottom of the third inning to retake the lead. Graduate designated hitter Brendan Hord started the rally with an RBI double, before junior outfielder Ty Rumsey came through with an RBI single two batters later to get UE back within a run at 5-4. Graduate outfielder Mark Shallenberger then followed two batters later with a two-run single to give UE a lead it would never lose.
UE tacked on three more runs in the fourth inning on a two-out, three-run double by Rumsey to push the lead to 9-5. A four-run fifth inning moved the lead to 13-5, as senior first baseman Kip Fougerousse and senior shortstop Simon Scherry had back-to-back RBI hits in the frame, and Rumsey added another RBI single. The Aces would finally explode for five runs in the eighth inning to cap the scoring, as Shallenberger had an RBI single and Scherry added a grand slam to left field for his first home run of the year.
While UE’s offense was on fire, so too was redshirt sophomore reliever Ethan Bell. Pressed into action in the third inning with a runner on base and one out, Bell recorded the final two outs of the third inning and then mowed through the Purdue Fort Wayne lineup with 3.2 innings of scoreless relief. Bell allowed just a lone single in his outing, while striking out six men to pick up his second win of the year and improve to 2-0 overall. Graduate reliever Jace KreUE BASEBALL ROARS PAST PURDUE FORT WAYNE, 18-5, IN SERIES OPENER
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – After falling behind early, the University of Evansville baseball team exploded for 16 unanswered runs on Friday night, as the Purple Aces cruised to an 18-5 victory over the visiting Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium in Evansville.
“Tonight was an overall great effort by our team,†said UE head coach Wes Carroll. “Our offense really picked us up, as throwing up 18 runs on a Friday is not easy to do. We had quality at-bats up and down our lineup, but it really starts with our lead-off man Mark Shallenberger. He had five quality at-bats in six trips to the plate, and lined out in his only time he didn’t reach base. He was locked in tonight.
“I also thought that the job that Ethan Bell tonight was huge. For him to come in and put up goose eggs was really key for us not only tonight, but to set up our pitching for the rest of the weekend with it being a four-game series. I am just really proud of the effort all the way around tonight.â€
Evansville jumped up early, as graduate third baseman Brent Widder launched a two-run home run to left-center field two batters into the first inning to give UE a 2-0 lead. Purdue Fort Wayne was able to rally for a run in the second inning and four in the third inning to grab a 5-2 lead, but the lead would be short-lived.
Evansville rallied for four runs in the bottom of the third inning to retake the lead. Graduate designated hitter Brendan Hord started the rally with an RBI double, before junior outfielder Ty Rumsey came through with an RBI single two batters later to get UE back within a run at 5-4. Graduate outfielder Mark Shallenberger then followed two batters later with a two-run single to give UE a lead it would never lose.
UE tacked on three more runs in the fourth inning on a two-out, three-run double by Rumsey to push the lead to 9-5. A four-run fifth inning moved the lead to 13-5, as senior first baseman Kip Fougerousse and senior shortstop Simon Scherry had back-to-back RBI hits in the frame, and Rumsey added another RBI single. The Aces would finally explode for five runs in the eighth inning to cap the scoring, as Shallenberger had an RBI single and Scherry added a grand slam to left field for his first home run of the year.
While UE’s offense was on fire, so too was redshirt sophomore reliever Ethan Bell. Pressed into action in the third inning with a runner on base and one out, Bell recorded the final two outs of the third inning and then mowed through the Purdue Fort Wayne lineup with 3.2 innings of scoreless relief. Bell allowed just a lone single in his outing, while striking out six men to pick up his second win of the year and improve to 2-0 overall. Graduate reliever Jace Kressin and junior reliever Drew Fieger pitched the final three innings scoreless to nail down the victory.
Scherry went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and six RBI, while Rumsey went 3-for-5 with five RBI to help lead UE. Shallenberger also reached base five times by going 2-for-3 with two hit-by-pitches, three runs scored and three RBI.
With the victory, Evansville improves to 5-4 on the season, while Purdue Fort Wayne falls to 2-7. The two teams will continue the series on Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Senior RHP Nick Smith and freshman LHP Kenton Deverman are scheduled to start the twinbill for UE.
ssin and junior reliever Drew Fieger pitched the final three innings scoreless to nail down the victory.
Scherry went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and six RBI, while Rumsey went 3-for-5 with five RBI to help lead UE. Shallenberger also reached base five times by going 2-for-3 with two hit-by-pitches, three runs scored and three RBI.
With the victory, Evansville improves to 5-4 on the season, while Purdue Fort Wayne falls to 2-7. The two teams will continue the series on Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Senior RHP Nick Smith and freshman LHP Kenton Deverman are scheduled to start the twinbill for UE.
