MARYVILLE, Mo. – Central Missouri Mules baseball plated a combined four runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to break a 4-4 tie and grind out an 8-5 victory over the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats in game two of a three-game MIAA series Saturday, Feb. 27, at Bearcat Baseball Field.
The Mules (7-3, 2-0 MIAA) clinch the series win against the Bearcats (4-8, 0-2 MIAA) and will go for the series sweep Monday, Feb. 28, at 1 p.m. in Maryville.
Harrison Schnurbusch connected for his first homer of the season and drove in a game-best four runs while
Garrett Pennington had a pair of hits, including a double, and an RBI, leading Central Missour at the plate.
UCM reliever
Tyler Rardin (1-0) earned the victory on the mound after allowing no earned runs on one hit with a strikeout in two thirds of an inning, and
Caleb Rogge picked up the save for the Mules, tossing a scoreless and hitless bottom of the ninth with a strikeout and walk.
Michael Chrisman plated the opening run of the four-run fifth for UCM, after reaching on a Bearcat error, allowing Pennington to score, before Schnurbusch hammered the first pitch he saw over the centerfield wall for a three-run home run, building the Central Missouri lead to 4-0.
Northwest Missouri answered quickly, however, plating four runs in the bottom-half of the fifth to knot the contest, 4-4.
Pennington put the Mules back in front in the top of the sixth, however, after belting an RBI single to right field, scoring
Carter Young to bring the score to 5-4.
UCM continued to increase its lead in the top-half of the seventh when Schnurbusch hit a sac fly to right that brought in
Seth Kenagy, making it 6-4, good guys.
Central Missouri took advantage of some sloppy fielding by Northwest Missouri in the top of the eighth, scoring two runs on two Bearcat errors, upping its lead to 8-4.
Northwest Missouri got a run back in the bottom-half of the eighth, but Rogge slammed the door shut in the bottom of the ninth, securing the 8-5 triumph.
Ryan Koski went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a double, pacing the Bearcats offensively.
Starter Zach Wiese (0-1) suffered the loss on the rubber, giving up five runs – one earned – on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks in 5 1/3 innings.
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