HUNTINGTON, W. Va. – A four-run surge in the bottom of the eighth by the opposition proved to be the deciding factor in a crushing 7-4 loss suffered by ULM Baseball (25-25, 10-15 Sun Belt) against Marshall (22-27, 12-13 Sun Belt) Friday night.
After the Warhawks went down in order to start the game, a single into right field and a hit batter put two base runners on for the Thundering Herd at the bottom of the first inning. A bunt moved the runners over before a groundball to the left infield allowed a run to score, making it a 1-0 lead for the home team after one.
Both teams went scoreless in the second as the Herd left two runners on base in the bottom frame.
Garrett Wiethorn started the top of the third with a leadoff double before
Zach White hit a sacrifice fly, scoring the right fielder from third and tying the game up 1-1. With one out in the bottom half, Jackson Halter belted a home run to left field, giving Marshall the lead right back with a 2-1 score after three.
Bryce Blaser led off the top of the fourth inning with a double to get into scoring position. With two outs,
Kade Dupont singled through the left side of the infield to bring Blaser across home plate, resulting in a 2-2 tie heading into the fifth.
Adam Brodnax kept the game tied through the fifth and sixth innings as he stranded runners in scoring position in both frames. At the top of the seventh,
Dayne Wray and
Davis Mauzy used singles to get on base before a walk to
Micah Dean loaded the bases. With two outs, Blaser lined a ball past the right side, scoring Wray and Mauzy from second and third and giving ULM a 4-2 lead.
Marshall got a run back with a sacrifice fly in a bases-loaded situation in the very next frame, clipping the Warhawks' lead to a single run. After a scoreless top of the eighth, the Herd saw a lead-off double put a runner into scoring position with no outs. After a wild pitch, a hit by pitch and a stolen base put two runners in scoring position, a bouncing single up the middle scored both runs and gave the herd the lead. After a pitching change, Halter homered for the second time, extending the lead to 7-4.
ULM went down in order at the top of the ninth and lost its sixth straight opening game of a Sun Belt series.
The Warhawks look to even the series tomorrow at 3 p.m. CT in Huntington, W. Va.
