Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team built a 5-0 lead, piloted by the pitching of sophomore Josh Biggs and home runs by senior Cody Fick and junior Trentt Copeland, as the Aces held off SIU Edwardsville for a 5-3 win Wednesday night at Braun Stadium. The victory gives UE its fifth straight and improves the Aces’ record to 17-9 on the year, while the Cougars fell to 10-17.

Biggs (1-0) threw six scoreless innings on the mound to earn his first win of the season, allowing three hits, two walks, while striking out four. The sophomore did not allow a single SIUE player past first base.

Fick led Evansville at the plate with his 3-for-3 performance, including two runs scored and two runs batted in on a home run and two singles.

The Aces jumped onto the scoreboard quickly with two runs in the first inning. Senior Nate Smith and sophomore Eric Stamets led off UE’s initial at-bats with back-to-back doubles, scoring one. Fick singled to left field, plating Stamets to give Evansville a 2-0 head start.

In the second, Copeland belted his first home run of the season and fifth of his career far over the left field wall. Fick copied in the fourth with a leadoff, first pitch homer to left-center to put the Aces up 4-0.

With two outs, senior Jared Baehl doubled, scoring Fick who reached base on a walk for what would be Evansville’s final run of the game.

Sophomore Adam Culiver relieved Biggs in the seventh and looked to get out of the inning just fine with two outs and a runner on first. However, another Cougar reached base on a hit-by-pitch. On what should have been the final out of the inning, Culiver fielded a groundball and threw it over the head of first baseman Ryan Oesterle, plating two on the play. Culiver walked two more before sophomore Jake Naumann came out of the bullpen with bases loaded. Naumann also surrendered a walk, bringing in the third run of the inning, before getting the final out of the side.

Naumann earned the save, throwing the final two innings and preserving the win for the Aces. He allowed one hit and four walks, including working his way out of another two-out bases loaded jam in the eighth.

Travis Felax (3-1) took the loss for the Cougars, throwing five innings and giving up four runs on five hits, a walk, while striking out four.

The Aces look to keep their winning streak alive when they open Missouri Valley Conference play Friday against Southern Illinois. Game one of the three-game series starts at 6:00 p.m. CDT.