EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville baseball team took its first series win over the Indiana State Sycamores in three seasons with an 11-10 walk-off win in the 11th inning on Saturday.

The Purple Aces completed their largest comeback of the season on Saturday night in an 11-inning slug fest with Indiana State. After falling behind by six runs in under four innings, UE clawed its way back to an 8-8 tie in the bottom of the ninth. Evansville was able to end the game in the bottom of the 11th as singles from Ty Rumsey (Evansville, Ind. / North HS), Cal McGinnis (Kimberly, Wis. / Bradley), and Kevin McCormick (Orland Park, Ill. / St. Laurence HS) scored three runs for the 11-10 final.

"What an incredible game. Just Missouri Valley Conference baseball at its finest," said Head Coach Wes Carroll after the win. "Rubber match games in this conference are always crazy, especially against rivals like Indiana State. For us, I've seen some unique baseball games on this field throughout my 17 years with a handful of walk-offs here and there.

"We showed so much grit and so much fight from a club that is pretty young. But if you see some of the guys that stepped up, Rumsey and Cal McGinnis. Just seeing our guys leave it out there when the season hasn't been going as planned. We showed a lot of fight last night and tonight in all three facets of the game. Our offense really responded tonight."

It was a three-up and three-down inning to start the game on both sides on Saturday night. Starting pitcher Owen Byberg (Barrie, Ontario) struck out the side for the Aces to have a strong start. But UE struggled over the next three innings on defense as the Sycamores scored six runs while blanking Evansville through the third.
The Aces broke the shutout in the bottom of the fourth, scoring two runs on three hits. Right fielder Harrison Taubert (Casper, Wyo. / Northeast CC) put a double down the left field line to score both left fielder Charlie Longmeier (Seymour, Ind. / Seymour HS) and catcher Matt Flaherty (Lake Zurich, Ill. / Bellarmine). Indiana State answered back with two runs of its own in the top of the fifth inning.

But UE's defense was able to keep the Sycamores scoreless for the next four innings of scheduled play. While the defense did its job, Evansville's offense added runs in the bottom of the fifth and the bottom of the sixth. In the fifth, a lead-off walk to third baseman Jake McGhee (Fenton, Mo. / Christian Brothers College) became the Aces' third run with a double from Rumsey. Rumsey also scored in the fifth as Flaherty had another long single to bring the outfielder home for UE.

Evansville had its fifth run in the sixth as another lead-off walk, this time to designated hitter Evan Waggoner (Bedford, Ind. / Bedford North Lawrence HS), became a run. Waggoner advanced on a wild pitch and a fielder's choice to move to third base, being 90 feet away from home. A sacrifice fly that almost went to the warning track from McGhee scored Waggoner to make it a three-run game.

The Aces' offense went down in order over the next two innings but had a big bottom of the ninth to force extra innings. After a strikeout to begin the ninth, McGhee and Rumsey had back-to-back singles, had two on for UE. Another strikeout was put on the board for Evansville, but Flaherty knocked his third hit of the night to the right corner to score McGhee.

McGinnis was up to bat after Flaherty and faced four pitches before putting the ball just up the middle to tie the game at eight runs with two outs on the board. The Aces weren't able to bring the winning run home in the ninth, sending the game to extras. It was an empty inning for both sides in the 10th, forcing an 11th inning.
Indiana State scored first in the 11th, bringing two runs home with three hits and a walk. UE faced a 10-8 deficit heading into the bottom of the 11th. The frame didn't start well for Evansville with a looking strikeout. But Rumsey again came through with a hit for the Aces to get UE's offense going.

Longmeier and pinch hitter Aaron Nehls (Evansville, Ind. / North HS) got free passes from Sycamores reliever Zac Laird to load the bases. With only an out on the board, Indiana State swapped pitchers before facing McGinnis. But a new pitcher didn't phase the infielder as McGinnis had his second game-tying single of the night into right field.

The single scored Rumsey and Longmeier, again making it a tied 10-10 score. Evansville didn't have to wait long with the score tied as Kevin McCormick came in to pinch hit for the Aces. McCormick saw a strike and a ball before making contact for a single that went through the left side, scoring Nehls as the game-winning run.
Reliever Drew Fieger (Fort Mitchell, Ky. / Lincoln Trail CC) picked up his second win of the weekend as he had his longest outing of the season so far against the Sycamores. Fieger pitched a full four innings for UE, where he allowed four hits, two runs, and a walk while striking out two batters. He is now tied for the Evansville lead in wins with LHP Kevin Reed (Martinsville, Ind. / Martinsville HS).

The Aces are back in action on the road on Tuesday night. UE makes the trip to Western Kentucky to complete its series with the Hilltoppers for a 6 p.m. game. Evansville will be back at German American Bank Field on Tuesday, April 29, to take on Indiana.