BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Despite a season-high 10 strikeouts from starter Ryan Thurston, WKU Baseball fell to visiting Middle Tennessee by a score of 3-2 on Friday night. The senior lefty went a season-high 7.2 innings and gave up three runs in a tough-luck loss.
With 10 strikeouts, Ryan Thurston reached 249 for his career on The Hill. The lefty started the night eighth all-time, but passed Stephen Stemle (240, 1996-98), Justin Hageman (243, 2011-14) and Ryan Bicondoa (246, 2001-02) and now sits fifth in program history.
The Hilltoppers had 21 baserunners - eight hits, eight walks, four times hit by pitch and one time reached on error - but left 17 runners on base. The hosts stranded the bases loaded in the first, eighth and ninth innings.
The Blue Raiders (10-8, 1-0) got on the board with two runs in the first inning, as a pair of walks to start the game to L.A. Woodard and Austin Dennis ended up coming around to score on a two-out single by Manuel Lopez.
WKU also had its first two hitters - Ray Zuberer III and Jacob Rhinemith - draw free passes, and Rhinesmith touched home on a two-out single by Colie Currie to center field. Just like that, the Hilltoppers cut their deficit to 2-1 after one and it stayed that way until the seventh.
Following a 32-pitch first inning, Thurston settled down and allowed only three baserunners over the next six scoreless frames. At one point, from the second-to-sixth, he retired 12 consecutive Middle Tennessee batters. He had 1-2-3 innings in the third, fourth and fifth, as well as two strikeouts in each of the first, fourth, fifth and sixth frames.
In the seventh inning, Steven Kraft extended his hit streak to seven games with a leadoff single. Currie followed with a ground-ball hit into right field to put runners on the corners. Tyler Robertson fought off an 0-2 pitch to produce his team-leading fifth sacrifice fly of the season to knot the game at 2-2.
Back out for the eighth, Thurston got the first two hitters out on a pair of ground balls on four pitches. But the next hitter, Aaron Aucker, hit a solo homerun to left field to give the visitors a 3-2 lead.
WKU (9-9, 0-1) had opportunities to re-tie the game in the eighth and ninth frames, but left the bases loaded in each against reliever Drew Huff.
Topper Notes
- The 17 runners left on base tied for third-most for the Hilltoppers since game-by-game records began in 2005. WKU left 19 on base vs. Kentucky on April 23, 2013, and vs. Southern Illinois on Feb. 24, 2012, but was still able to win both games.
- Kevin Lambert, making his 73rd consecutive start on the left side of the infield, went 3-for-4 and reached base via hit by pitch in the ninth inning. The Tampa, Fla., native tied a career high with those three hits, previously reached vs. Charlotte on April 14, 2017.
- Colie Currie had a career-high two stolen bases on Friday night, which was also a season-high for the Hilltoppers. WKU had a player with multiple stolen bases on four occasions in 2017.
Topper Quotes
- "Ryan Thurston did a great job for us today to get us deep into the game, into the eighth inning, and he was outstanding. He kept us in the game and we had a chance to win, you can't ask for any more from your starter if he does that. — Head coach John Pawlowski
- "Unfortunately we were unable to come up with a big hit. They did a good job, they made some pitches and plays when they needed to. Close ballgame tonight, just weren't able to come through with a big swing." — Head coach John Pawlowski
Up Next
Game 2 between the Hilltoppers and Blue Raiders will get underway Saturday, March 17, with first pitch at 1 p.m. It will be two righties facing off, with Colby Taylor from WKU and Carson Lester of Middle Tennessee.
