SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Looking to stretch out his University of Evansville career a little bit longer, Patrick Schnieders went the distance on the mound on Thursday morning as he and the Purple Aces rode its young line-up to a 12-2 victory over Bradley the first elimination game of the Missouri Valley Championship at Hammons Field.
"We showed a lot of fight today in all three facets of the game," UE head coach Wes Carroll said. "It all starts on the mound. What an unbelievable effort from Patrick, and I'm so proud of him. At the plate, it was great to see our overall approach against a lefty who did well against us earlier this year. You could feel the confidence and momentum growing in our dugout, and the quality at-bats followed."
With the win, the Aces (18-38) punched their ticket to Day 3 of the tournament. The team will be faced with a third consecutive 9 a.m. contest, taking on either Dallas Baptist or Indiana State in another elimination game. With a win, UE would have to win one more to make it to Saturday's final day.
Schnieders set the tone early with a 1-2-3 top of the first inning, and the Aces offense burst through the gates in the bottom half as the entire order stepped to the plate, collecting four runs on six hits and chasing Braves starter Cole Cook from the mound.
"My first thought was to let it all hang out there," Schnieders said. "It was potentially my last start ever, and I wanted to go out there and leave no doubt in my mind that I gave everything I had. Seeing the guys put four up in the first like that is a pitcher's dream come true. It just gave me a lot of confidence, and it makes it easier for me to pitch."
Cook, who tossed a complete game shutout of the Aces a month ago, recorded just one out and dropped to 8-6 on the season.
The Braves (20-31) attempted to fight back into it with a pair of two-out runs in the top of the third, but the Aces responded once again with a five-run bottom half to take control of the game at 9-2. Craig Shepherd started the rally with a two-out single to left, and another freshman, Brendan Krob, followed up with a double to put two in scoring position. Stewart Nelson kept it going with a single through the left side to re-establish the four-run lead. After Troy Beilsmith was hit by an errant pitch, Kenton Crews doubled in another score, and Trey Hair rounded out the surge with a two-run single.
Shepherd ended the day 3-for-3 with a pair of runs. Beilsmith, Hair and Krob each enjoyed two-hit performances, and as a team, the Aces out-hit the Braves 14-6. Eight of the team's hits came from the freshman quartet of Beilsmith, Crews, Krob and Shepherd. The group combined to reach base safely 12 times, scoring seven runs and knocking in six more.
From there, Schnieders would make short work of the Braves, ending the game with six hits allowed and one walk while striking out seven. After the Aces pushed across two more runs in the fifth and another in the sixth, the MVC's 10-run rule was activated, handing the senior right-hander his first complete game victory of the season. He improved to 5-6 overall.
Those two runs in the fifth were scored on a Hair bases-loaded walk and a Travis Tokarek sac fly. The final run was brought home in the sixth as a Krob double plated Shepherd.
On Friday, UE will turn to Justin Hayden on the mound to try to send the Aces into a fourth tournament game for the second consecutive season.
NOTES: The 12 runs represent the most scored by the Aces in a conference tournament game since a 14-3 victory over Wichita State in the 2006 tournament … UE is now 26-36 all-time in the MVC tournament … The Aces are 5-7 in tournaments that have been played in Springfield and 4-7 as the No. 6 seed … UE has played more 9 a.m. games than any other team in Valley history … The Aces are 12-12 all-time in morning contests at the conference championship … Since 1978, UE is 54-39 against Bradley, which includes a 2-4 mark in the tournament … Thursday marked the third-ever elimination game between the two teams and the first since a 4-3 Aces win in 2013 … Bradley won the other in 15-5 fashion in 1996.
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