Ray Zuberer III went 3-for-4 with three RBI and Chase Larsen went 3-for-3 with three runs scored for the Hilltoppers, who salvaged Game 3 of the Conference USA-opening series against the Blue Raiders.
WKU scored at least one run in the bottom half of all four innings Middle Tennessee scored in the top half. This included three apiece in the fourth and fifth frames to take an 8-6 lead they would hold thanks to a four-inning save by Ben Morrison.
The Blue Raiders took a first-inning lead for the third time in the series when Ryan Kemp doubled in Austin Dennis with one out off Hilltopper starter Paul Kirkpatrick.
WKU responded with a pair of unearned runs, as Colie Currie singled home Zuberer, who was on third base thanks to a dropped pop-up. With two outs and runners on the corners, Tyler Robertson stole second and Jacob Rhinesmith trotted home when a throw from the catcher sailed into center field.
Kirkpatrick cruised through the second and third innings, but got into trouble in the fourth. Middle Tennessee used four hits, including a two-run homerun by Aaron Aucker, to knock the Hilltopper righty out of the game with a 5-2 lead.
Still, WKU kept working, as 7-8-9 hitters Jake Ryan, Larsen and Kevin Lambert loaded the bases for Zuberer with one out. The designated hitter knocked Ryan home with a sacrifice fly, then Steven Kraft was hit by pitch to re-load the bags for Rhinesmith. The reigning C-USA Hitter of the Week came through with a two-run single to knot the game at 5-5.
Although the Blue Raiders re-took a 6-5 lead on a single and triple to start the fifth inning against reliever Evan Acosta, help from the Hilltopper bullpen in the form of Maddex Richardson and eventual winning pitcher Austin Tibbs were able to prevent any further damage.
The bottom of the order got things going once again for WKU in the bottom half, as Luke Brown, Larsen and Lambert all reached base. After one run scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch, Zuberer brought home a pair with a two-out single for the 8-5 lead.
Morrison came in to pitch the sixth inning and retired 12-of-14 batters faced. The only baserunners the senior allowed were a batter who reached on an error and came around to score in the seventh and an infield single in the ninth inning. He struck out two and threw 35-of-46 pitches for strikes.
In the meantime, the Hilltoppers added one in the seventh on a two-out single by Kraft that scored Larsen and extended his team-best hit streak to nine. They scored their final tally in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Brown that scored Currie.
Topper Notes
- After going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and stranding 17 runners in a 3-2 loss on Friday, WKU improved throughout the weekend, going 4-for-17 on Saturday and 5-for-16 on Sunday.
- The Hilltopper bullpen pitched 11.1 innings over the weekend, allowing only three runs.
- Ben Morrison completed a career-high four innings, but his 46 pitches were not a career high. He threw 48 pitches earlier this season on March 3 vs. West Virginia.
- After back-to-back losses at No. 7 Kentucky and against the Mountaineers, Morrison has bounced back with back-to-back saves in scoreless outings.
- Ray Zuberer III extended his hit streak to eight and his reached-base streak to 12, both are career-high marks for the sophomore. He recorded his fifth multi-hit and fourth multi-RBI game of the season, those three RBI tying a career high from March 9 vs. Bowling Green.
- Chase Larsen tied a career high with three hits, a mark he had reached on two occasions prior to Sunday, while he scored three runs for the first time as a Hilltopper.
- Colie Currie stole two bases for the second time in three games after not doing so for the first 71 games of his WKU career. His eight steals already in 2018 are a team high and almost touches the nine he had all of last season.
- Currie notched his ninth multi-hit game of the season and 27th of his career. Kevin Lambert scored multiple runs for the third time this season and sixth time in his career. Jacob Rhinesmith recorded his seventh multi-RBI game; he leads the team with 21 RBI and 15 two-out RBI.
Topper Quotes
- "We called this game 'Championship Sunday' and I was proud of the way we responded today. You can't say enough about the job Ben Morrison did, it was an amazing outing for him. We didn't use him in the first two games, so we made the commitment to put him in early if we had to, to see what he could do. What a response game for him." — Head coach John Pawlowski
- "Obviously we didn't play our best baseball this weekend but getting this one is a big thing in our conference. If you want to want to do well in this conference you have to at least salvage one." — Infielder Steven Kraft
- "It was good to come out on top in this one, it was a good team win. The bullpen did a great job, our whole lineup did a great job top-to-bottom. I think that's our best team win of the year by far." — Infielder Chase Larsen
Up Next
WKU hosts No. 12 Louisville at Bowling Green Ballpark for a midweek matchup that begins with first pitch at 5:30 p.m. It is the first of a home-and-home between that will see the Hilltoppers return to Jim Patterson Stadium on April 24. WKU holds a 69-67 advantage in the all-time series and has faced the Cardinals at least once each of the past 28 years.
