MARTIN, Tenn. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball got seven strong innings from junior left-hander Jake Porter and pounded out 17 hits to defeat the University of Tennessee at Martin, 11-1, Saturday afternoon in Martin, Tennessee. USI is 21-25 overall and 10-10 in the OVC, while UTM is 17-28, 8-11 OVC.
Porter (3-4) was dominating through eight innings of work to get his third win of the year. The junior left-hander allowed one run on five hits and one walk, while striking out five in seven innings of work. The seven innings were a season-high for Porter.
The Screaming Eagles took control of the game early, scoring three in the first inning and leading 3-1 after the first frame. The 3-run first inning was highlighted by an RBI double by junior designated hitter Cole Kitchens and an RBI single by junior catcher Micajah Wall.
After the Skyhawks scored a run in the bottom of the first, USI expanded its lead to 5-1 in the third inning. Senior centerfielder Khi Holiday singled through the left side to score a pair of runners for the USI offense in the frame.
The Eagles increased the lead to 6-1 in the fifth on an RBI sacrifice bunt before taking the margin to 8-1 with two runs in the seventh. USI scored in the seventh on an RBI single by junior pinch hitter/leftfielder Hunter Miller and an RBI ground out by Kitchens.
USI continued its scoring in the eighth on solo home runs by sophomore third baseman Parker Martin and Wall to take the lead to 10-1. The Eagles finished their scoring in the ninth when sophomore rightfielder Cameron Boyd sent a sacrifice fly to right to score Miller.
Offensively, Holiday led the way with four hits, while Holiday, Kitchens, and Wall posted two RBIs each.
