MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball scored six runs late and defeated Middle Tennessee State, 7-2, Tuesday afternoon at Reese Smith Jr. Field in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. USI is 18-11 this season, while MTSU is 16-13.
 
USI opened the scoring in the first inning when senior catcher Micajah Wall gave the Screaming Eagles a 1-0 lead with a bases-loaded walk. The 1-0 lead would last until the five inning with five USI hurlers holding MTSU to one hit.
 
The Blue Raiders responded to USI's first inning run with a pair of tallies in the sixth to lead 2-1. The Screaming Eagles bounced back to retake the lead, 3-2, with a pair of runs of their own in the top of the seventh.
 
Wall tied the score, 2-2, by knocking in a run on a bases-loaded fielder's choice, while junior pinch hitter Drue Saenz gave USI back the lead, 3-2, by also reaching on a fielder's choice.
 
USI sealed the victory with three more runs in the top of the eighth. Senior first baseman Patrick McLellan and senior shortstop Clayton Slack recorded RBI-singles, while McLellan would go on to score on a throwing error. McLellan finished the game with a team-high three hits.
 
The Screaming Eagles capped off their scoring with a run in the ninth when junior pinch runner Dane DeWees scored after junior third baseman Parker Martin reached on an error for the eventual 7-2 final score.
 
On the mound, junior right-hander Levin East recorded his team-high fifth win of the year in relief. East allowed two runs on two hits and a walk.
 
Graduate right-hander Nathan Anderson, junior right-hander Jacob Barrett, senior left-hander Jake Porter, graduate right-hander Ian Anderson, and sophomore right-hander Caydon Laird preceded East to the mound and allowed only one hit in five innings.  
 
Up Next for the Screaming Eagles:
USI, 3-3 in Ohio Valley Conference action this year, returns to the friendly surroundings of the USI Baseball Field Thursday when it starts a three-game OVC series against SIU Edwardsville. The USI-SIUE series is slated to start Thursday at 6 p.m., continues Friday at 6 p.m., and concludes Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
Fans are encouraged to watch social media and USIScreamingEagles.com for any schedule changes due to weather. Links to follow the Screaming Eagles during 2026 can be found on USIScreamingEagles.com and the USI Baseball Schedule.  
 
SIUE is 14-14 overall and 6-0 in the OVC after sweeping three games from Tennessee Tech at home last weekend. The Cougars have won six of the last seven and nine of the last 12 contests.
 
USI trails in the series, 60-49, after losing two of three at SIUE last spring. The Cougars won game one, 11-5, and game three, 10-4, while the Screaming Eagles took the middle game, 13-11.