Skip To Main Content

Indiana State University Athletics

team
1
Evansville UE 35-23
10
Winner Indiana State INS 41-14
Evansville UE
35-23
1
Final
10
Indiana State INS
41-14
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Evansville UE 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 1
Indiana State INS 0 0 0 1 2 4 2 1 X 10 13 0

W: Miller, Lane (7-0) L: Jarrett Blunt (5-1) S: Davidson, Zach (2)

Game Recap: Baseball | | Seth Montgomery | GoSycamores.com

Sycamores advance to 2023 MVC Championship Game following 10-1 win over No. 4 Evansville

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – No. 1 Indiana State broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the fifth inning on Luis Hernandez's RBI double to the left center wall and the Sycamores scored 10 unanswered runs in downing No. 4 Evansville on Friday afternoon at Bob Warn Field, 10-1.
 
With the win, Indiana State (41-14) advances to Saturday's Missouri Valley Baseball Championship Game for the 13th time in program history and third in the last four tournaments dating back to 2019. The Sycamores will await the winner of Friday night's elimination game between No. 2 Missouri State and Evansville. First pitch of the game is set for 2:30 p.m. ET.
 
Indiana State pounded out 13 hits and ISU was hit eight by pitches eight times in the game as the Sycamores took advantage of Evansville (35-23) wildness to constantly have runners in scoring position throughout the contest. Josue Urdaneta and Grant Magill both recorded three-hit games, while Adam Pottinger, Urdaneta, and Miguel Rivera both had multi-RBI contests in the win.
 
Lane Miller (7-0) remained undefeated on the mound as the redshirt senior picked up his second win of the season over Evansville. Miller retired the first 10 batters of the game and recorded a career-high six strikeouts over 5.1 innings on the mound. He surrendered a Chase Hug solo home run among the two hits given up in the win.
 
Zach Davidson (S, 2) was equally brilliant in relief allowing three hits over 3.2 innings while striking out six in his second save of the season. It marked Davidson's fourth game with at least six strikeouts out of the bullpen in 2023 and third over his last five appearances.
 
Hernandez's RBI double scoring Urdaneta broke open the 1-1 game in the bottom of the fifth and Miguel Rivera added a sacrifice fly scoring the sophomore later in frame. The Sycamores added two runs in the fifth, four in the sixth, two in the seventh, and one final run in the eighth in the win.
 
ISU did have a brief scare in the contest as Hernandez was hit by a pitch around the jawline of his helmet in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Guarbo, Puerto Rico native returned to the game in the bottom of the seventh in finishing 2-for-4 from the plate with a double and a stolen base.
 
Hernandez and Randal Diaz were both hit by pitches in the game while six of ISU's nine starters were plunked in the contest. Indiana State has been hit 111 times in the 2023 season surpassing the previous Mitch Hannahs team-high of 105 set back in 2018.
 
Chase Hug's solo home run powered the Evansville offense in the loss. Danny Borgstrom added a double among the Purple Aces' five hits in the game.
 
Jarrett Blunt (5-1) took the loss after going 5.0 innings on the mound allowing eight hits and four runs (three earned), while striking out nine. Shane Harris and Jakob Meyer went the rest of the way to close out the game.
 
How They Scored
  • Chase Hug put Evansville ahead in the top of the fourth inning with a one-out solo home run to right field giving the Purple Aces the early 1-0 lead.
  • Indiana State responded in the bottom of the fourth as the Sycamores took advantage of an UE error and Parker Stinson's sacrifice fly to tie the game up at 1-1. Mike Sears hustled home on the play to even the game up.
  • Luis Hernandez connected on the go-ahead RBI double to left center scoring Josue Urdaneta and later came around to score on Miguel Rivera's sacrifice fly to give Indiana State the 3-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth.
  • Indiana State loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth inning in sparking a four-run frame. Josue Urdaneta drove in the first run with an RBI single, while Adam Pottinger (RBI walk) and Miguel Rivera (RBI HBP) brought home runs. Keegan Watson added a sacrifice fly to cap the inning making it a 7-1 lead through six.
  • Adam Pottinger connected on a two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Sycamores the 9-1 lead as Grant Magill and Randal Diaz both came around to score on the play.
  • Josue Urdaneta brought home the final run of the contest after getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning scoring Parker Stinson to provide the 10-1 margin.
News & Notes                                                                                                                                    
  • Indiana State improved to 41-18 overall on the season with the win on Friday afternoon.
  • The Sycamores advance to the MVC Tournament title game for the third time in the last four tournaments and 13th time in program history dating back to 1979.
  • The Sycamores won three MVC Tournament games for the first time since 2021 and 12th time overall in program history.
  • The Sycamores last won their first three games of the MVC tournament in the 1989 season. ISU went on to claim MVC title in the 1989 season for the fifth time in program history. when ISU was tournament champions at the postseason event held in Wichita, Kan.
  • The Sycamores improve to 7-4 all-time in the tournament against Evansville with the win. It marked ISU's first win in the postseason against the Purple Aces since 2019.
  • ISU has posted 18 wins at Bob Warn Field this season – equaling the most by the Sycamores since the 2012 season when ISU went 18-6 at home.
  • Lane Miller posted a career-high six strikeouts over 5.1 innings pitched on Friday afternoon. The redshirt senior surpassed his previous high of five strikeouts achieved five times in the 2023 season.
  • Adam Pottinger's bunt single in the bottom of the fifth marked the 31st consecutive game the junior outfielder has reached base dating back to April 2 against UIC. His on-base streak is tied for the longest in the Mitch Hannahs era with Romero Harris (31, 2018).
  • Indiana State was hit by a season-high eight pitches in the game marking the most times the Sycamores have been hit in the same contest in the Mitch Hannahs coaching era.
  • The Sycamores have been hit 111 times overall in the 2023 season surpassing the previous high under Coach Hannahs back in 2018 (105).
  • Indiana State has scored double-digit runs in back-to-back MVC Tournament games for the first time since the 1987 season when ISU topped Creighton (12-8) and Wichita State (11-10) in back-to-back contests.
  • Zach Davidson's six strikeouts in relief marked the fourth time the Sycamore left-hander has recorded six or more strikeouts in the 2023 season. He was two shy of his previous season-best eight set against Illinois back on May 2.
  • Six of the nine Sycamores in the starting lineup were hit by pitches including Randal Diaz and Luis Hernandez both getting plunked twice in the game.
  • The Sycamores have posted double-digit hits in each of the last six games dating back to May 18 against Missouri State.
Up Next
No. 1 Indiana State will take on the winner of No. 2 Missouri State and No. 4 Evansville in the MVC Championship game scheduled for Saturday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. The game will be carried live on 105.5 The Legend and ESPN+.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on the Sycamore Baseball team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
Print Friendly Version