Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Trailing 10-5, the University of Evansville baseball team rallied to score five runs in the bottom of the ninth, and then loaded the bases to earn a walk-off walk in the 10^th to capture an 11-10 victory over Western Michigan in wild fashion Friday night at Braun Stadium. The win improves the Aces record to 12-6 on the season, while the Broncos fall to 6-9.

UE’s third pitcher of the night Tyler Miller (1-0) earned the win, throwing two perfect frames in the ninth and tenth and recorded two strikeouts. Jake Naumann was UE’s middle reliever, hurling 2.1 innings, allowing three runs, three hits and struck out one. Starter Cole Isom made it 5.2 innings, giving up seven runs, 10 hits, while striking out eight.

Sophomore Tim Bodine had the best game of his career, going 3-for-4 at the plate with four RBI and two runs scored. Jake Mahon (1-for-3) and Andy Lasher (1-for-1) both logged three RBI, while Jason Hockemeyer (2-for-5) and Kevin Kaczmarski (2-for-6) both had multi-hit games as the Aces combined for 10 hits, 11 RBI, and 11 walks in the win.

Western Michigan burst out to a 5-0 advantage through the first two innings, but the Aces made ground in the bottom of the second with four runs of their own. After Kyle Pollock reached base on an error, a single by Kaczmarski, walk, and two-RBI single through the left side by Bodine put UE on the board. Eric Stamets continued the rally with a sacrifice fly, and Mahon’s infield single made it a 5-4 game.

It was 6-5 after the squads traded a single run in the fourth inning, but the Broncos steadily built their lead with four unanswered runs through the eighth. Western Michigan plated one in the sixth on two singles sandwiched around a walk, scored one in the seventh playing small ball, and two more runs in the eighth stringing together three consecutive one-out singles, a walk, and a groundout to lead by a score of 10-5.

However, when the Aces could have just rolled over and looked ahead to the next day’s game, Evansville battled back in the bottom of the ninth. Hockemeyer got the rally going with a leadoff single to right field. With one out, Kaczmarski’s high pop-up to shallow left field looked to be a can of corn, but the Broncos dropped it, allowing all to be safe. Chris Pearson walked to load the bases, setting up Lasher’s and Bodine’s back-to-back doubles down the left field line that made it a one-run game, 10-9. Stamets reached base on a plunk to put runners on the corners, still with one out.

Looking to be the hero, Mahon’s ball to deep right-centerfield led to a rollercoaster of emotions from both dugouts and confusion throughout the stands. Centerfielder Jordan Tillman made a spectacular diving catch, but it was difficult to tell from afar if it was a clean grab. Bodine tagged from third, but Stamets ran the bases without tagging and the Broncos doubled him off at first. WMU stormed the field thinking they had won, but after discussion of the official rules, Bodine’s run counted because it was before the third out, sending the game into a 10^th inning.

Miller was stellar on the mound, sitting the Broncos down in order, and the Aces kept the momentum on their side heading into the bottom of the frame. Facing Chris Bossenberry, WMU’s sixth arm of the night, Hockemeyer walked with one out, and advanced to third on Kaczmarski’s two-out single up the middle. The freshman centerfielder stole second, causing Bossenberry to intentionally walk Pearson to load the bases and make it a force-out at every bag. However, with bases loaded, two outs, and a full count in the bottom of the 10^th inning, Lasher, the junior transfer from Olney Central, drew a walk, bringing in the winning run and capping a wild night at Braun Stadium.

Game two of the three game series with Western Michigan resumes Saturday at 2:00 p.m. CT.