ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – The University of Southern Indiana baseball team blasted its way to a doubleheader split with Lewis University Friday afternoon in Roemoville, Illinois. USI fell short in game one, 6-5, but bounced back in the nightcap to win, 16-4.
 
The Screaming Eagles saw their record go to 16-17 overall and 13-13 in the GLVC, while the Flyers finish the doubleheader 16-19, 11-15 GLVC. The doubleheader split keeps the Eagles in a tie for second in the GLVC East Division with Bellarmine University and the University of Illinois Springfield.  
 
USI junior third baseman Trent Gunn (Tell City, Indiana) capped off an eight-run second inning with a grand slam to lead the Eagles to a 16-4 victory in the nightcap. Gunn, who is tied for the team-lead with four round-trippers in 2015, would finish the doubleheader with two home runs and six RBIs. The grand slam also was the first of Gunn's career at USI.
 
In addition to Gunn's blast in the second inning, USI also got a two-run shot by junior rightfielder Kyle Kempf (Evansville, Indiana) in the six-run fourth that sealed the victory for the Eagles and a two-run round tripper by senior shortstop Matt Chavarria (Carlsbad, New Mexico) in the fifth. Kempf's home run tied him with Gunn for the team lead, while Chavarria's was his third of the season.
 
The 16-runs marked the third double-digit game for the Eagles in the last eight contests in which USI has averaged over eight runs a game.
 
On the mound, junior right-hander Alex Holder (Princeton, Indiana) won his third-straight game for the Eagles. Holder (4-0), who allowed his first run in 15 innings of work over three games, gave up four runs, three earned, on seven hits and two walks over six innings of work.
 
The Eagles spotted the Flyers a 5-0 lead after two innings before falling short in an opening game comeback, 6-5. USI's comeback was stopped short of erasing Lewis' early lead when junior centerfielder Hamilton Carr (Evansville, Indiana) was cut down at the plate on a double by junior pinch hitter Jaylen Quarles (Indianapolis, Indiana) with one out in the ninth.
 
After falling behind after two innings, Gunn's first home run of the day, a two-run blast, put USI on the scoreboard in game one and led a four-run fourth inning to pull the Eagles two within one, 5-4. The Eagles also got a two-run single from freshman second baseman Joe Redburn (Newburgh, Indiana) in the fourth.  
 
USI would fall behind 6-4 before pulling back to within one, 6-5, on a run in the seventh and set the stage for the ninth.
 
Eagles' senior right-hander Ben Wright (Newburgh, Indiana) had his two-game winning streak stopped in the opener. Wright (2-5) allowed six runs on 11 hits and three walks through 5.1 innings of work.
 
USI and Lewis conclude the four-game series Saturday with a noon doubleheader in Romeoville.
 
The Eagles return home for their last regular season homestand next week, starting with Oakland City University on Wednesday. The homestand continues with a four-game series with McKendree University April 24-26 and ends with a single-game showdown with Kentucky Wesleyan College April 28.