EVANSVILLE, Ind. ? Winners of five straight games, the Indiana State baseball team hit the road to face off against Southern Indiana in a non-conference match up on Saturday night. The Sycamores (26-13) pounded out 17 hits and ISU starter Jake Petricka shut down the Screaming Eagles (33-12) lineup to secure a 10-0 shut out at historic Bosse Field and extend ISU's winning streak to six in a row.
Petricka (6-1) was dominant on the mound, as he allowed just five hits and tied his career high with seven strikeouts while holding the Eagles scoreless through 7.2 innings. Reliever Kevin Mann closed out the game, allowing just one hit while picking up a strikeout in 1.1 innings of work. USI starter Tyler Choate (7-3) suffered the loss, after giving up seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits in six innings on the bump.
After a scoreless first inning, the Sycamores picked up a run in the top of the second inning to take an early 1-0 lead. With one out in the inning, designated hitter Tyler Graham doubled to left field and then came around to score when catcher Bronco Lafrenz reached on a throwing error by USI third baseman Alex Thieroff.
The Sycamores blew the game open in the top of the third inning, scoring five runs on four hits to extend their lead to 6-0. Second baseman Brian Ramirez walked to lead off the inning, but was put out at second base as left fielder Brady Shoemaker reached on a fielder's choice. Right fielder Nick Ciolli then singled through the left side before third baseman Luke Fieser struck out for the second out of the frame. Graham followed and singled up the middle as Shoemaker scored and Ciolli advanced to second base. Lafrenz then doubled to right center field, which scored Graham and Ciolli to make the score 4-0. First baseman Brian Jett capped off the big inning with a long two-run home run over the left field fence, his seventh home run of the season, to give ISU a six-run advantage.
Petricka continued to shut down the USI offense over the next two innings before ISU tacked on another run in the top of the sixth inning. With one out in the inning, center fielder Ryan Strausborger led off the inning with a single, stole second base and then scored on a RBI single by Ramirez. The Sycamores kept the runs coming, as a two-run single to right field off the bat of Lafrenz pushed two runs across the plate in the top of the seventh inning to make the score 9-0.
Shoemaker capped off the night with his third home run in three games, a solo shot over the old outfield wall in left field that measures approximately 375 feet, in the top of the eighth inning to bring the score to its final at 10-0. The home run was Shoemaker's team-leading ninth of the season and tied his total of nine home runs from last season.
Lafrenz led the way at the plate for the Sycamores, as he finished 3-for-4 with a run scored and four RBI in the shut-out win. Jett also had a solid day with two hits and two RBI, while Luke Fieser picked up a hit to extend his hitting streak to 14 games.
Indiana State returns to action on Sunday, when they face off against Oakland City for the second time in three days. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST at USI Field in Evansville, with Joe Rodriguez (4-1) taking the bump for the Sycamores.
