LOUISVILLE, Ky. – WKU dropped its midweek matchup to No. 7 Louisville, 13-6, Tuesday night at Jim Patterson Stadium.
The Hilltoppers recorded two home runs in the contest, including the first career long ball by Hunter Evans, and kept things close through seven innings before the Cardinals pulled away late.
"That's one of the things we always talk about with this group is that we're going to play hard for all nine innings no matter who we face," said head coach John Pawlowski. "I thought we did that today. I thought we kept battling. We had this at a 7-6 game going into the bottom of the seventh.
"I just thought from that point we obviously weren't able to hold on to that one-run margin. They put a couple runs on the board, and the next thing you know they put up a couple triples and then the game turns out certainly not how we hoped at that point."
WKU utilized 10 different pitchers on the mound, with the group combining to allow 12 earned runs while striking out six batters in 8.0 innings of work.
At the plate, the Hilltoppers tallied three hits and eight walks. Evans and Jack Wilson both went 1-for-3 on the day, with the duo each recording a home run in the contest, while Ty Crittenberger hit 1-for-4 while adding a run.
SCORING SUMMARY
WKU opened the scoring in the first frame, with Wilson blasting a two-run bomb to left center.
The Cardinals added one run in the bottom of the inning, scoring on an RBI-groundout to second base.
Louisville took its first lead of the game in the fourth frame, using an RBI-double down the left field line and RBI-single to earn a 3-2 advantage.
Evans' solo shot in the top of the fifth would later tie things up at three apiece.
The Cardinals answered back in the bottom of the fifth, scoring four runs in the frame to make it 7-3.
WKU cut into Louisville's lead in the seventh inning, loading the bases before scoring on a walk, hit-by-pitch and wild pitch to put the score at 7-6.
The Cardinals would then go on to score six unanswered runs, leading to the 13-6 final.
UP NEXT
The Hilltoppers will open conference play with a four-game series against Charlotte beginning at 5 p.m. CT on Friday, March 26.
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