Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Freshman southpaw Kyle Freeland’s strong outing on the mound led the University of Evansville baseball team to a 5-1 victory over Eastern Illinois University in the final game of the Dunn Hospitality Diamond Classic Sunday afternoon at Braun Stadium.

The Aces improve their overall record to 6-5, after recording four wins this week, while the EIU Panthers fall to 4-5 on the year.
In his second start of the season and first on the Aces’ home field, Freeland (1-1) tossed seven innings, allowing just one run, five scattered hits, a walk, and struck out four. Junior Jake Naumann threw a perfect seventh inning, and Josh Biggs closed the ninth, giving up one infield hit and struck out one.

Jake Mahon led the Aces at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBI, as the squad recorded 10 hits in the game.

Eastern Illinois scored its lone run of the ballgame in the top of the first when Caleb Howell lined a leadoff single to centerfield. He advanced on a sacrifice bunt and scored on Ryan Dineen’s double down the right field line. However, that would be the last time a Panther would cross the plate, as Freeland settled down the rest of the way.

Evansville took the lead for good in the second, scoring two runs off starter Troy Barton (1-1). Leading off the inning, Jason Hockemeyer was hit by a pitch and Kyle Pollock singled to center, putting runners on first and second.  Kevin Kaczmarski walked to load the bases with one out. After getting hit by a pitch, Mahon was called back to the plate for not moving out of the way, but he responded with a single up the middle, scoring both runs to give UE a 2-1 lead.

In the fourth, the Aces tacked on another run when Kaczmarski singled to lead off, advanced to third on two wild pitches, and scored on Tim Bodine’s bunt single.

Evansville continued to stretch its lead in the seventh and eighth with two insurance runs. In the seventh, Trentt Copeland reached first on a fielding error by the shortstop, stole second base, and scored on Chris Pearson’s single through the left side for a 4-1 advantage. With two outs in the eighth, Eric Stamets doubled to deep left-centerfield. He crossed the plate following two wild pitches by the new reliever Keith Koser.

Nine different players for UE contributed hits in the all-around good team win.

The Aces are back in action Wednesday when they play a single game at Western Kentucky at 6:00 p.m. CT, and then travel to Tennessee Tech for a three game series starting Friday at 3:00 p.m.