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BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—For the second-straight day, six early runs by the Samford University Bulldogs proved to be too much to overcome for the University of Evansville baseball team, as the Bulldogs posted a 7-4 victory over the Purple Aces at Joe L. Griffin Field in Birmingham, Alabama.

Evansville was able to strike first for a run in the top of the first inning thanks to an RBI single by senior first baseman Tom Heithoff. Samford would quickly answer back though with three runs each in the first and second innings to build a 6-1 lead for the second game in a row. 

Evansville would respond with two runs in the third inning on an RBI ground out by junior outfielder Greg Wallace and a solo home run by Heithoff to cut the Samford lead to 6-3. Junior outfielder Ty Legan would also add his first career home run, a solo shot in the fourth inning to cut the deficit to 6-4, but that would be as close as UE would come, as the Samford bullpen would limit Evansville to two hits in the final three innings to preserve the victory.

“I really feel like the energy is there and this team has come together well, but we are just not getting the results that we want right now,” said UE head coach Wes Carroll. “And, a lot of that starts with our pitching and defense. We are just not playing good Evansville baseball right now by not getting quality pitching and solid defense.

“It’s very tough to try and win a game when you give up six runs in the first two innings and you commit three errors defensively. That’s been the story in both of the first two games here this weekend. Hopefully, we can get a quality start by Josh Biggs tomorrow, and he can set the tone for us in the center of the diamond, so we can get back to playing Evansville baseball.”

Heithoff paced Evansville offensively by going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. Legan and Wallace also both went 1-for-4 with an RBI for UE. Third baseman Stephen Ballard led Samford offensively by going 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored, and three RBI.

Sophomore right-hander Kyle Putkonen (2-0) earned the victory for Samford by scattering four runs on five hits in 6.0 innings of work. Freshman left-hander Lex Rutledge worked a scoreless ninth inning to record his fourth save of the year for the Bulldogs. Rookie right-hander Jake Naumann (0-2) took the loss for UE by yielding seven runs (five earned) on nine base hits in 3.1 innings of work.