USI's winning streak ties a season-best seven games GAME 1 SCORE: USI 3, Lewis 1
Box Score (Sortable) | Box Score (HTML) GAME 2 SCORE: USI 5, Lewis 1
Box Score (Sortable) | Box Score (HTML) EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The 18
th-ranked University of Southern Indiana baseball team soared in sweeping a doubleheader from Lewis University, 3-1 and 5-1, Friday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI rises to 28-8 overall and 20-4 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, while Lewis falls to 19-17, 12-11 GLVC.
The doubleheader sweep raises USI's winning streak to a season-high tying seven games. The Screaming Eagles also have won 14 of the last 15 contests.
The Eagles manufactured runs in the second, fifth, and sixth innings to defeat the Flyers, 3-1, in the opener. Senior leftfielder
Jonathon Wandling (Evansville, Indiana) started the scoring for USI by doubling to lead off the second and later scored on a ground out to give USI a 1-0 lead.
After the Flyers tied the score, 1-1, in the fifth, the Eagles responded with the eventual game-winner in the bottom half of the inning. Sophomore centerfielder
Hamilton Carr (Evansville, Indiana) doubled to lead off the inning and would cross the plate when senior shortstop
Caleb Eickhoff (Evansville, Indiana) grounded into a double play, giving the Eagles a 2-1 lead.
USI sealed the victory the next inning when sophomore first baseman
Andrew Cope (Evansville, Indiana) scored on an RBI-single by senior designated hitter
Bryce Shoulders (Newburgh, Indiana). Cope had walked to lead off the inning and moved into scoring position on a sacrifice and a ground out.
On the mound, junior right-hander
Ben Wright (Newburgh, Indiana) gave the Eagles another quality start and picked up his fifth win of the year. Wright (5-1) gave up one run on seven hits and one walk, while striking out three in 6.2 innings of work.
Junior right-hander
Andrew Mercer (Mount Pearl, Newfoundland) got Wright out of a jam in the seventh and pitched a scoreless eighth before turning game over to junior shortstop/closer
Matt Chavarria (Carlsbad, New Mexico) to close out the game. Chavarria struck out two on his way to his team-best and GLVC-best eighth save of the year.
In the nightcap, sophomore rightfielder
Kyle Kempf (Evansville, Indiana) went three-for-three and scored three times to lead the Eagles to a 5-1 victory to complete the doubleheader sweep. Kempf singled and scored in the first and third inning, while doubling and scoring in the sixth. He also had a pair of stolen bases.
The three-for-three performance in game two raised Kempf batting average to .349, 78 points better than his average a year ago.
Wandling dominated on the mound in game two and collected a team-high tying sixth win of the year. He allowed an unearned run on four hits, while striking out nine batters in seven innings of work. The victory also was Wandling's second complete game of the year.
The Eagles and the Flyers conclude the four-game series Saturday with a noon doubleheader.
