The UCA Bears baseball team and the Southern Illinois University Salukis went head-to-head April 4 in a doubleheader, with UCA coming home with the sweep against SIU in Carbondale, Illinois.
The Bears (17-9, 8-4 Southland Conference) came out on top after two strong offensive showings, winning their first game 8-3 on April 4, followed by a come from behind win in the second game 6-5.
SIU (5-25, 1-5 Missouri Valley Conference) came out strong in the first inning of the series’ final game April 4, making it on the scoreboard.
The top of the second proved a solid inning for the Bears as they took the lead.
Senior designated hitter Nick Rougeau came in strong, laying down a bunt to bring in junior shortstop Logan Preston, giving the Bears a 2-1 lead.
Junior infielder Matt Anderson got things going for the Bears in the fourth, hitting a double to lead off the inning.
Junior third baseman Hayden Steele then laced a double out to left field, pushing the Bears’ lead to 3-1 at the end of the fourth.
The Salukis had a quick comeback, stringing together three two-out singles in the fifth to cut the lead to 3-2, but UCA continued pouring on runs, earning five runs in the seventh to finish off SIU.
Rougeau led with a single and was sacrificed to second base before senior left fielder Wesley Hoover roped a double to right field to drive Rougeau in.
SIU made a quick pitching change shortly after junior second baseman Chris Townsend was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second.
Junior catcher Brandon Montalvo then ripped a double of his own down the left field line to drive in two runs.
After a wild pitch, pinch runner freshman outfielder Michael Haun moved to third. Anderson came in as a heavy hitter once again, picking up his second home run of the season, making UCA’s lead 8-2.
The UCA bullpen shut down SIU after that, cruising through the final two frames to secure the win.
Junior pitcher Brandon Hagerla (4-1) earned the victory for the Bears, limiting the Salukis to two runs on six hits and a pair of walks over six innings.
Senior pitcher Josh Markel threw the seventh, allowing a run on two hits, while freshman pitcher Chris Durham worked the eighth and the ninth. He held SIU to two hits and struck out three.
UCA’s pitching and offensive opportunities afforded by a stout defense have been crucial to several of the Bears’ wins.
Junior centerfielder Tyler Langley was stoked to see UCA’s arms come in and get the job done.
“This weekend, we had a great start with [junior pitcher Connor]Gilmore coming out and Preston throwing really well for
us Thursday,” Langley said. “It’s always fun and exciting playing behind [Gilmore] because you know he is going to get the job done.”
The second game of the day proved a close one. The Salukis came out swinging, going up 5-1 by the end of the fifth inning, only allowing the Bears to answer back with one run when Preston doubled to right center to drive in Steele.
The Bears clawed their way back with three two-out runs in the sixth. Townsend got the rally going and moved to second on a single from Rougeau.
Langley went the other way to drive in Townsend with a double down the left field line, and Hoover drew four balls to load the bases.
Then, Anderson laced a single to left to plate Rougeau and Langley and cut the Saluki lead 5-4.
Townsend found an equalizer for the Bears in the top of the seventh, hitting a ground ball to second base.
The ball wasn’t fielded cleanly, and Steele raced in to knot the game at 5-5. In the top of the eighth, the Bears rallied to get on top.
Hoover reached with a one-out single, and Montalvo doubled to left to bring him in and put the Bears up 6-5.
Sophomore pitcher Riley Echols started for the Bears, allowing four runs, just one earned, on three hits and three walks in three innings. Junior pitcher Bo Stitch worked the next one and two-thirds innings for the Bears, giving up one run on three hits and walk.
Junior pitcher Derek Beier (2-0) earned the win with four and one-third innings of relief work.
He held the Salukis to six hits and a walk while striking out four. With perseverance and a certain maturity of play, the Bears were able to get the sweep Easter weekend.
Hoover said he felt good about the growth displayed by the Bears this weekend.
“The second game on Saturday was a big win for us because we had to overcome so much early during that game,” Hoover said. “I was glad to see the maturity of our guys sticking to what we need to do to get the sweep.”
The Bears returned home yesterday, facing the University of Arkansas—Pine Bluff Golden Lions. Coming away with a pair of wins this weekend will be crucial for the Bears as they face Nicholls State University, a tough conference competitor. NSU is 18-12-1 overall and 8-7 in the SLC.