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For Immediate ReleaseBaseball -- March 14, 2012
Baseball Loses Two Wednesday in North Carolina
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Eureka College baseball team raced to early leads in each of its non-conference games Wednesday in Greensboro, N.C., but late rallies by the hosts doomed the Red Devils in a 9-3 loss at Guilford and an 11-5 defeat at Greensboro.
Sophomore second baseman Jordan Hodel (Roanoke, Ill./Roanoke-Benson H.S.) pushed the Red Devils (0-4) in front early against Guilford (11-8), smashing a two-out, two-run double to left field for a 2-0 EC advantage in the first inning. Hodel later helped the Red Devils lead 3-1 when he scored on an RBI groundout from catcher Josh Hofer (Washington, Ill./Washington H.S.) in the top half of the fourth inning.
The host Quakers cut their deficit in half in the bottom of the fourth on John Macon Smith’s leadoff home run. Guilford forced the first tie of the afternoon one inning later when Casey Mann drilled a run-scoring triple for a 3-3 deadlock.
The score remained tied at 3-3 until Guilford blew the game open with a six-run seventh inning. Justin Pittman started the frame with a triple to left-center field and ultimately scored the go-ahead run on the next at-bat when Ben Esser reached second base on a throwing error in the Eureka infield. The Quakers tacked on three more hits later in the inning and sent 10 batters to the plate while building their 9-3 lead.
Hodel drove the Eureka offense from the six-spot of the lineup against Guilford, finishing 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Sophomore shortstop Grant DeWitt also had a multi-hit game with a 2-for-4 showing out of the leadoff spot. Sophomore starting pitcher Bryan Meyer (Dunlap, Ill./Dunlap H.S.) was strong on the hill for EC until running into trouble in the seventh inning. He allowed only three earned runs and struck out three Quakers through 6.1 innings pitched.
Following the game at Guilford, Eureka traveled across town for an evening contest against Greensboro. The Red Devils struck first for the second consecutive outing, scoring two runs on a two-base error in the GC infield in the top of the second inning. The Pride got on the board in the bottom of the inning on Jon Krecicki’s RBI single, cutting Eureka’s lead to 2-1. Eureka got the run back in the fifth on an RBI single from Eric Lopez (Oak Lawn, Ill./Lakes H.S.) for a 3-1 cushion.
Eureka tacked two more runs in the top of the seventh to lead 5-1, but the Pride recovered to push across four tallies to force a 5-5 tie. Greensboro sent 10 batters to the dish in the frame, and Seth Caison’s bases-loaded walk tied the game. The Pride completed its comeback with six more runs in the eighth inning. Leadoff batter Bill Wooding scored what proved to be the winning run on a wild pitch for a 6-5 lead. The Pride smashed out five hits in the inning.
Lopez and senior infielder Blake McConkey (Fairview, Ill./Spoon River Valley H.S.) collected two hits apiece for the Red Devils against Greensboro. Sophomore starting pitcher Kyle Kiesewetter (Metamora, Ill./Metamora H.S.) turned in a solid effort on the mound, allowing only one earned run on six hits over 6.0 innings before giving way to the EC bullpen.
The Red Devils will close their five-game Spring Break swing on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT against Greensboro. Thursday’s contest has been moved from War Memorial Stadium to Leonard Park in Greensboro, N.C.
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For More Information Contact:
Bryan Moore
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