On a windy Saturday at Tomlinson Stadium-Kell Field, the Arkansas State baseball team split a doubleheader en route to capturing a series victory against Illinois State.
A-State (4-5) took the first contest 2-1 in a pitcher’s duel behind a pair of RBI extra-base hits, while the Redbirds (5-4) salvaged the final game with a 7-1 victory in the nightcap.
Daedrick Cail tallied three hits, including a double, on the day to lead the Red Wolves at the dish.
GAME 1 | ARKANSAS STATE 2, ILLINOIS STATE 1
Arkansas State opened up the day in a battle on the mound, as Illinois State starter Derek Salata (1-2) struck out eight and walked just one in six innings in the loss. A-State’s Tyler Jeans tossed 4 2/3 innings, allowing one unearned run on four hits, but did not factor into the decision.
Ben Klutts led the charge at the plate, tallying two hits, including a solo shot in the third to represent the eventual game-winning run. The Scarlet and Black pounded out eight hits in the victory – the first for A-State when scoring two runs or less since May 6, 2018 (def. Texas State 2-1).
A-State struck first in the second when a Cooper Tremmel double drove in Jaylon Deshazier to make it 1-0. After a quick inning by Jeans, the Red Wolves tacked on another in the third when Klutts hammered an opposite-field homer to right to put the score at 2-0.
The Redbirds plated their lone run in the fifth on a double steal attempt in which the throw down to second was wide, allowing Connor Olson to score. That would prove to be all Illinois State would muster in the opener, as Will Nash (1-0), Brandon Anderson and Kevin Wiseman combined to scatter just three hits the rest of the way. Wiseman closed out the contest with a scoreless ninth to earn his second save in as many games, clinching the series for the Red Wolves.
GAME 2 | ILLINOIS STATE 7, ARKANSAS STATE 1
Illinois State plated five runs in the seventh inning to put the second half of the doubleheader out of reach, ultimately taking a 7-1 decision to salvage the final game of the three-game series.
Justin Medlin (0-2) pitched five strong innings for A-State, allowing just one run on four hits, while Cail tallied two of the Red Wolves’ seven hits on the afternoon, including a double in the ninth inning.
The Redbirds struck first on an RBI groundout by Greg Nichols, driving in Nick Gile to make it 1-0 after two. Reliever Colin Wyman (1-0) came on in place of starter Justin Foy in the bottom of the second for Illinois State and fired five shutout innings, allowing just a pair of hits to earn the win.
Illinois State added a five-spot in the seventh to lead 6-0. A two-run single by Jake McCaw plated Olson and Aidan Huggins before pinch-hitter Josh Blount was hit by pitch to load the bases. On the next pitch, Nichols roped a double down the left field line to unload the bases. Jonathan Baldelli recorded a strikeout to end the inning without further damage.
A-State got a run back in the bottom of the eighth that was set up by a double by Jacob Hager and base hit by Wil French to lead off the inning. Klutts hit a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Hager from third and ending the Redbirds’ shutout bid, but a force out at second in the next at-bat ended the frame.
Illinois State responded with one final insurance run in the top of the ninth, as Matt Darr singled up the middle to drive in Ryan Cermak from second. The Red Wolves hoped for a comeback bid with two down in the ninth on Cail’s double, but a groundout ended the contest.
NEXT UP
The Red Wolves conclude their seven-game home stand Tuesday and Wednesday with a pair of midweek matchups. On Tuesday, A-State hosts Southeast Missouri State while playing host to Southern Illinois in Wednesday’s contest.
