March 26, 2003
Richmond, Ky. - The Western Kentucky baseball scored three runs in the top of the first inning, but fell victim to three innings where they allowed three or more runs in falling 12-8 to Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday. The loss ended a two-game win streak for Western, which is now 13-8 on the season. EKU improves to 7-10.
The biggest blow by the Colonels came in the bottom of the seventh after Western had pulled to within 8-7. Eastern scored four runs as Adam Visnic singled to start the inning. Visnic scored as Chris Clark took Andy Baldwin (Jr., Campbellsville, Ky.) deep for a two-run home run. Will Whisenant and Robby Price scored on a single by Brett Bolger to make it a 12-7 game.
The Hilltoppers had scored three runs in the top of the seventh to pull within a run. With one out, Matt Gunning (Victoria, B.C.) was hit by a pitch and moved to second when Tim Grogan (Fr., Villa Hills, Ky.) walked. After Antone Towns (So., Louisville, Ky.) singled loading the bases, Brent Miller (So., Muncie, Ind.) picked up two RBI with a single to left. Travis Brown (Kankakee, Ill.) earned his third RBI with a single scoring Towns.
The Hilltoppers tried to get a jump on Eastern scoring three runs on one hit in the first. Western took advantage of a pair of walks by Nick Adams (2-1) to Matt Johnston (Jr., Clarkson, Ky.) and Gunning to start the game. With one out, Towns loaded the bases when he reached on an error by Jonathan Woodard. After Johnston scored on a ground ball by Miller, Brown drove in a pair of runs with a single up the middle.
EKU responded with four runs in the second, one in the fourth and three in the sixth. In the bottom of the second, the Colonels opened the inning with five straight base hits to score four runs off starter Igor Roiberg (Jr., Toronto, Ont.), who fell to 0-2 on the season. Visnic opened the inning with a single and scored on double by Clark. Clark scored as Whisenant made it back-to-back doubles. Whisenant and Price scored before the inning was over to make it 4-3.
After Eastern scored an unearned run after Towns dropped a fly ball in the bottom of the fourth to make it 5-3, the sophomore atoned for his mistake with a solo home run to right with one out in the top of the fifth. It was his first of the season and his fifth as a Hilltopper and cut the WKU deficit to 5-4.
In the bottom of the sixth, Eastern struck for three more runs for an 8-4 advantage. After reliever Chris Conley (Fr., Somerset, Ky.) walked a pair of batters, Josh Anderson hit a 3-run home run to right-center to extend the team's lead.
In the eighth, Western added its final run of the game when Towns picked up his second RBI with a single to drive in Johnston. Towns finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored. Brown was 2-for-5 with three RBI.
Western Kentucky will now head to Miami for a three-game series with Florida International beginning on Friday for a 6 p.m. game.
