April 8, 2008
Box Score
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Saint Louis suffered a 7-3 loss at Missouri State in a non-conference baseball game at Hammonds Field tonight. The Billikens (13-15) mounted a late rally with three runs in the eighth, but it was not enough to overcome a deficit that included a four-run seventh inning by the Bears (19-10).
Tom Pinnell went 2-for-4 with a two-run single in the eighth. Greg Rodgers accounted for the other run when he drove in his team-leading 23rd run of the year on an RBI groundout. J.D. Dunn and Ryan Johnson also had two hits for the Billikens.
After a scoreless first two innings, Missouri State jumped on the board with a run in the third off of SLU starter Chris Merrick (1-2). The Bears then went up 3-0 when they cracked a pair of solo home runs in the fourth. Brayden Drake and Christian Overstreet did the damage in the fourth.
Merrick settled down and held the Bears scoreless over the next two innings before Missouri State broke the game open with four runs - all unearned - in the seventh. MSU got RBI singles from Nolan Keane, Drake, Ben Carlson and Kyle Paul to go up 7-0 through seven innings.
Saint Louis, which had posted just three hits through the first seven innings, made things interesting late with three runs in the eighth. Johnson started the inning with a pinch-hit single and advanced to second a single to center by Dunn. Ramee Yacoub then walked to load the bases. Rodgers drove in Johnson when he grounded out to second. With the bases still loaded, Pinnell ripped a Pat Doyle pitch through the right side to plate Yacoub and Dunn and trim SLU's deficit to four at 7-3.
After Chaz Salembier pitched a scoreless eighth inning for the Billikens, SLU left two base runners stranded in the ninth after Johnson reached on a two-out double and Dunn drew a walk. In all, Saint Louis left eight runners on the base paths.
The Billikens look to bounce back tomorrow when they host Bradley in a make-up contest from a previously snowed-out game. First pitch at The Billiken Sports Center is slated for 3 p.m.
