EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team picked up its first series win in dominating fashion on Sunday with its second shutout of the year in an 8-0 win over the Central Arkansas Bears.
All nine Purple Aces in the lineup on Sunday afternoon recorded a hit in the team's series-winning game over Central Arkansas. Center fielder Ty Rumsey (Evansville, Ind. / North HS) and designated hitter Aaron Nehls (Evansville, Ind. / North HS) were the only two UE players who recorded multiple hits on the day while Rumsey led the team in RBIs with three. On the mound southpaw Kevin Reed (Martinsville, Ind. / Martinsville HS) had another gem of a game pitching seven innings, allowing only three hits, and striking out six batters with no walks. Junior LHP Sam Sandy (Athens, Ala. / Frontier CC) had a strong first appearance for Evansville, closing out the game in the final two innings only allowing two hits and two walks in forty pitches.
"It was another special performance from Kevin Reed to get the series win today," said Head Coach Wes Carroll following the game. "Offense grinded out at-bats early to get the lead. And it was a good series win on the road."
It was a quick first inning as the Aces got two walks but nothing else, and then they took down the Bears in order. UE took an early lead in the top of the second inning capitalizing on two lead-off walks as a single from third baseman Ben Stuart (Mason, Ohio / William Mason HS) followed by a fielder's choice from Rumsey scored two runs. Reed added his second and third strikeouts of the game in the bottom of the second, quickly putting Evansville back on offense.
The top of the third inning was another two-spot for the Aces as shortstop Drew McConnell (Blue Springs, Mo. / Blue Springs HS) led off the inning with a double to right field. McConnell's double was followed up by a single through the right side for catcher Evan Waggoner (Bedford, Ind. / Bedford North Lawrence HS) to have runners at the corners. McConnell scored on UE's next at-bat as left fielder Charlie Longmeier (Seymour, Ind. / Seymour HS) reached on a fielder's choice.
Evansville's next batter grounded out to first but advanced Longmeier to second. The outfielder would score his first run of the day on the next play as Nehls had his first hit into left field. The Aces held a 4-0 advantage going into the bottom of the fourth where Central Arkansas threatened with two runners reaching base on fielding errors. But two straight flyouts to end the inning kept the game all UE after a third.
It was a quiet fourth for both teams as everyone went three up and three down. Reed added another two strikeouts to his game total in the bottom of the fourth for Evansville. The Bears again got two runners on in the bottom of the fifth. But with two outs on the board, a fielder's choice to get the out at third quickly ended the inning.
The Aces had their best offensive inning in the top of the sixth as their first three batters all singled. With the bases loaded Rumsey found the gap on the right side to score first baseman Kevin McCormick (Orland Park, Ill. / St. Laurence HS) and Nehls for a 6-0 game. Right fielder Harrison Taubert (Casper, Wyo. / Northeast CC) singled through the left side gap scoring second baseman Mason McCue (Bourbonnais, Ill. / Bishop McNamara HS). UE added its eighth and final run of the game in the next at-bat after a double steal from Rumsey and Taubert had both in scoring position. A fielder's choice from McConnell that didn't record an out sent Rumsey home for the 8-0 lead.
Central Arkansas threatened in both the bottom of the sixth and the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases twice. In both circumstances, Evansville's pitchers were able to work their way out of the jam with a flyout to left center and a double play from second to first base. The double play to end the eighth inning was the Aces' sixth of the weekend to give them 11 on the season.
UE had two runners reach base in the top of the ninth as Longmeier had a lead-off single and McCormick was hit by a pitch. But Evansville's bats didn't find a second hit to bring either runner home. The Aces were able to end things quickly in the bottom of the ninth with only one Bear reaching base. A ground out, a pop-up, and a fielder's choice in four at-bats secured UE the 8-0 win and the series.
For the third game in a row Evansville's offense had over 10 hits. In total the Aces connected on 11 hits with two doubles from Rumsey and McConnell. Rumsey was the only UE batter with multiple RBIs on the day while Taubert, McConnell, Longmeier, and Nehls added one each. On the mound Reed and Sandy combined for only five hits, no runs, two walks, and six strikeouts in 140 pitches.
Evansville continues its time away from German American Bank Field with two midweek games. The Aces will first visit 2024 NCAA Tournament team SEMO on Tuesday afternoon in Cape Girardeau. They'll then follow up their game against the Redhawks with a stop in Edwardsville for a Wednesday afternoon matchup with SIUE. First pitch from Capaha Field on March 11 is set for 3 p.m.
