Ball State Sweeps Doubleheader with Miami, O’Donnell Records Career High in Strikeouts
OXFORD, Ohio – The Ball State baseball team returned to McKie Field at Hayden Park for two games against Miami. The Cardinals utilized great pitching, solid defense, and timely hitting to complete the doubleheader sweep of the RedHawks.
Trennor O’Donnell threw an absolute gem in game two for the Cardinals. He recorded a career-high 11 strikeouts in six innings of work. He surrendered an earned run and gave up just two hits for the game.
Zach Cole produced his ninth triple of the season and regained sole position at the top of the NCAA leaderboard for triples. He also set the BSU single season record for triples in the process.
Amir Wright saw his streak of reaching base safely come to an end in game two at 26 consecutive. He has produced two different streaks of 26 and has reached safely in 52 of the 54 games this season. Trenton Quartermaine saw his streak of 28 games reaching safely come to an end in game one. Nick Powell extended his streak of reaching base safely to 17 games.
Ryan Peltier extended his hitting streak to nine games and has now reached safely in 14-straight games.
Game One – Ball State 4, Miami 2
The RedHawks jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on a sac fly to left by Cole Andrews.
Cole led off the top of the second with a single up the middle and then advanced on a passed ball. Adam Tellier drew a four-pitch walk to put two on with no outs for Ball State. Peltier singled up the middle and scored Cole. CJ Horn reached on a fielder’s choice to third and advanced to second on the throwing error by the third baseman as Tellier was able to score on the play. Justin Conant hit into a double play, but Peltier was able to score on the play. The Cardinals took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the second.
Powell recorded a one-out single to right field in the top of the third. Powell stole second with one out and moved into scoring position. He advanced to third on a passed ball and then scored on a throwing error by the catcher. Ball State took a 4-1 lead into the bottom of the third.
Miami cut the Ball State lead to 4-2 in the bottom of the fourth on a Willie Escala home run to right center. The Cardinal bullpen produced 3 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball to give BSU the 4-2 victory.
Powell, Cole, and Peltier led the offense with two hits each. Peltier picked up the lone RBI for the Cardinals.
Ty Johnson got the start in game one and went 3 2/3 innings in the no decision. He struck out five batters and surrendered two runs, one earned, on five hits. Ryan Brown picked up the win and improved to 4-2 overall. He threw 2 2/3 innings and struck out four batters with one hit. Sam Klein picked up his 11th save of the season with 2/3 of an inning of relief. He struck out one of the two batters he faced.
Zach Maxey threw a complete game. He collected seven strikeouts and gave up four runs, one earned, on eight hits.
Game Two – Ball State 11, Miami 1
It was a pitcher’s duel early in game two as neither team was able to get anything going through the first three innings of play.
The Cardinals got on the board first in the top of the fourth as Hunter Dobbins launched a solo homer over the left field wall. Cole followed with a solo home run to deep center to give Ball State back-to-back jacks to start the inning. Peltier was hit by a pitch with one out and then stole second and third. Matthew Rivera drew a walk on seven pitches. Conant dropped down a perfectly placed sac bunt to score Peltier from third. BSU held a 3-0 lead as the game went to the bottom of the fourth.
In the top of the fifth the Cardinals plated five runs on four hits with a RedHawk error. Cole, Tellier, Peltier, and Conant all recorded RBIs in the inning. The Cardinals took a 8-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth.
O’Donnell held the RedHawks hitless through the first four innings. Miami picked up its first hit in the bottom of the fifth.
The RedHawks scored one run in the bottom of the sixth on single through the right side by Parker Lester.
Conant led off the top of the eighth with a double to left center. Powell drew a two-out walk, followed by a Dobbins walk that loaded the bases for the Cardinals. Cole belted a triple to right center to clear the bases and gave BSU an 11-1 lead headed into the bottom of the eighth.
Mac Ayers tossed a scoreless eighth and solidified the 11-1 run rule victory.
O’Donnell picked up the win and moved to 6-2 on the season. Ayres produced two innings of hitless ball with three strikeouts, which tied a career high.
Luke Leverton got the start in game two and went 4 1/3 innings and picked up the loss. He fell to 1-6 overall. He struck out three batters and surrendered eight runs, six earned, on seven hits. Nick DeMonica went 3 1/3 innings in relief with three earned runs on five hits. Martin Sosna finished with 1/3 of an inning.
The Cardinals and RedHawks will close out the series on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m.
From the Coach – Head Coach Rich Maloney
“Our boys played a solid doubleheader today. So many guys are making contributions. Sam Klein earned his 11th save, which is tied for fourth all-time in a single season. Zach Cole hit his ninth triple, which set a single season record. Trennor O’Donnell was outstanding. Proud of our boys. We are a team.”
From the Student-Athlete – Sophomore Pitcher #43 Trennor O’Donnell
“Today’s wins were huge for the team. It is always good to have momentum going into Saturday. Our offense has been really hot, so it is easy to feel confident on the mound knowing that my guys are going to put up some runs for me.”
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