April 23, 2008
Box Score
ST. LOUIS - Saint Louis was upended 9-4 by Missouri State Wednesday in non-conference baseball action at The Billiken Sports Center. Two-run doubles by Greg Rodgers and Zach Outman put SLU on top 4-3 through four innings, but the Bears scored two runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to drive them to the 9-4 decision.
SLU falls to 18-21 with the loss, while the Bears improve to 27-13. The Billikens now set their sights on a key Atlantic 10 Conference series against George Washington that begins Friday at The BSC.
Both teams started the scoring in the third inning. For Missouri State, Ben Woodbury drove in the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly, and Brayde Drake later stroked an RBI single up the middle to make it 2-0. The Bears made it 3-0 later in the inning when they plated an unearned run after a Billikens fielding error in right field.
The Billikens sliced into the deficit with a pair of runs in their half of the frame. Ziggy Moore started the inning with a single, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. J.D. Dunn was hit by a pitch to bring up Rodgers, who jacked a pitch into the right-centerfield gap to cut the Bears' lead to just one at 3-2.
SLU starter George Hebert faced the minimum in the fourth thanks to an inning-ending double play that was started and finished and Tom Pinnell. The Billikens then took the lead for the first time in the game in the bottom of the fourth. David Blackwell led off with a single to right field, and then advanced to second on Ryan Johnson's groundout. Casey Moore walked, and both he and Blackwell advanced on a wild pitch.
Outman, who entered the game in the third inning as a defensive replacement, then sent a shot down the left-field line that ran all the way to the wall, allowing Moore and Blackwell to score easily and make it 4-3 Billikens through four.
However, Missouri State and its potent offense reclaimed the lead in the fifth on RBI singles by Ben Carlson and Chris Playter. The Bears made it 7-4 in the sixth when Dallas Hord lifted a sacrifice fly and Woodbury poked an RBI single up the middle. In the seventh, Carlson homered to right field and Ryan Mantle later plated a run via a single to deliver the final 9-4 margin.
Rodgers and Blackwell had two hits apiece to lead SLU, which was out-hit 17-8 on the afternoon. Hebert got the loss after allowing seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits while striking out three. Reliever Brad Perkins hurled the final three innings of the contest and allowed two runs on seven hits.
MSU's Jon Barnes picked up the win on the mound after shutting out the Billikens for 4-1/3 innings, allowing three hits and two strikeouts with no walks.
Game one of a three-game set with George Washington begins at 7 p.m. Friday at The BSC. Game two is slated for Saturday at 1 p.m., with the series finale coming at noon on Sunday.
