The Redhawks outhit Tennessee Tech (39-19) in Game 6 of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Thursday afternoon but fell in the runs column, 14-9.
Southeast falls to 29-25 on the season. The Redhawks will play Murray State Friday at 11 a.m. in an elimination contest.
Southeast scattered 17 total hits, four more than the Golden Eagles. The Redhawks’ eight and nine-hole hitters Connor Basler and Kyle Bottger each had three hits including a double apiece while five others each had two hits. Dan Holst and Chris Osborne both drove in two runs each. In all, Southeast had eight extra-base hits, six of which were doubles.
Clay Chandler surrendered eight runs on eight hits in his three and two-thirds innings start. TTU got five extra-base hits off Chandler including three home runs.
Five SEMO relief pitchers were used on Thursday. Daniel Bergtholdt (2-1) was pegged for the loss. He gave up an unearned run in the sixth that allowed TTU to take the lead.
Michael Wood worked four innings and gave up eight runs but Southeast had 11 hits off him. Travis Moths (4-1) earned the win out of the pen pitching the final five innings. He gave up just one run, struck out eight, and walked none.
The Redhawks struck early in the contest. Osborne shot a double into the right center gap with one down in the inning. Two batters later, Chris Caffrey traded places with Osborne to put SEMO on the board. Caffrey touched home on a Brian Lees base hit up the middle for an early 2-0 lead.
Tennessee Tech hit Chandler hard in the bottom of the first with five extra-base hits, pegging the righty for four runs. The scoring came via a three-run home run by Ryan Flick followed by a solo shot by Chase Chambers to erase the early Redhawk lead after one, 4-2.
Southeast responded with four runs of their own in the top of the second. Following a single by Basler and a double by Bottger, Holst drove both in with a double driven to the wall in right field, tying the game. Osborne hit a high popup to left that the left fielder lost in the sun. The ball fell for a triple, putting SEMO back on top. Osborne trotted home when Caffrey found a hole at short, 6-4 SEMO. Holst’s on-base streak was extended to 42 games with his RBI double in the stanza.
Flick retied the game with a solo home run to right center in the bottom of the third, 6-6. The home run set a new OVC Tournament record for 27 combined home run in the tournament.
For the first time in the game, the Redhawks put their leadoff man aboard when Holst singled up the middle to start the fourth. A pair of wild pitches by Wood put Holst on third for Osborne. Holst then crossed the plate when Osborne grounded out to second and the Redhawks went back on top 7-6.
A two-run, four-hit fourth by TTU allowed the Golden Eagles to recapture the lead. The inning started when Matt Jones doubled down the left field line. Chandler worked a pair of outs but Alex Junior kept the inning alive with an RBI single up the middle, retying the game at seven all. Two batters later, Kevin Strohscheine put TTU back in the lead with an RBI single into left, 8-7. Daniel Bergtholdt entered for Chandler and got Flick to ground into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.
The game was once again tied when SEMO scratched a run across in the fifth. With bases loaded, Bottger lined out to left, allowing Lees to tag and score, tying the game at eight runs apiece.
With two on and no out in the bottom of the inning, an error by Basler allowed Tech to retake a 9-8 lead. One down and bases loaded two batters later, Flick hit his third home run of the contest to bring the TTU lead to five, 13-8.
Junior used a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the seven to extend the lead to six, 14-8. TTU proceeded to load the bases for Flick but Matthew Wade struck him out looking to end the Golden Eagle scoring threat.
Danny Wright hit his second home run of the tournament to right center in the bottom of the ninth to bring the scoring to an end, 14-9.
Flick ended the day as the Tech hits leader as all three went over the wall and drove in nine RBI. Both figures were an OVC Tournament record. Four others recorded two hits each to Tech.
