Eastern Michigan Athletics
Friday, February 17
Ft. Myers, Fla.
7 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
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Missouri
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Eastern Michigan
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Mizzou
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Photo by: Steve King/KingStudios
Baseball Knocks Off Missouri in Season Opener, 6-2
2/17/2017 10:58:00 PM | Baseball
The Eagles trailed 2-1 after the first inning
FT. MYERS, Fla. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team got the 2017 season started on the right foot with a 6-2 victory over the University of Missouri, Friday, Feb. 17, at City of Palms Park. The Eagles were down 2-1 after one, but shut down the Tigers for eight scoreless innings to finish the game.
The bats for EMU (1-0) collected 10 hits spread amongst eight of the nine players in the starting lineup. Senior John Montgomery (Anaheim Hills, Calif.-JSerra) had three RBIs in a 2-for-3 game. Junior Brennan Williams (Commerce Township, Mich.-Walled Lake Northern) also had a pair of hits to go along with an RBI and two runs scored. Eastern did most of its damage against consensus preseason All-American Tanner Houck of Missouri (0-1), who finished the game with the loss after going 5.2 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits.
Meanwhile, the Eagle pitchers were in almost complete control after the first inning where starting pitcher Brent Mattson (Canton, Mich.-Canton) was tagged for a pair of runs. The righty settled down though, earning the win after going five, striking out four. EMU's bullpen then went the rest of the way, with sophomore Caleb Hester (Coloma, Mich.-Coloma), and seniors Matthew Beaton (Guelph, Ontario-Bishop Macdonnell Catholic) and Sam Delaplane (San Jose, Calif.-Leigh) combining for four clean innings, only allowing four hits and striking out five.
The Eagles had a great opportunity in the first inning after a one-out single from Williams, and capitalized on it. The junior advanced to third on a wild pickoff attempt with two outs, and came around to score after a passed ball, gifting EMU the 1-0 lead after the first half inning.
Mizzou had the immediate response with a pair of runs on four hits in the bottom of the first to take their first lead, 2-1 after the first inning. A scoreless second gave way to the third where EMU had the response.
Sophomore Max Schuemann (Portage, Mich.-Portage Northern), the nine hitter, had the key leadoff walk, and redshirt senior Marquise Gill (Paw Paw, Mich.-Paw Paw) followed with a sharp single to put runners on the corners. Gill then stole second, and Williams drove in the run with a sacrifice fly to tie it at two. With two outs, Montgomery came through in the clutch with an RBI single through the right side and EMU recaptured the lead, 3-2, heading into the bottom of the third.
There, Mattson got into a little trouble, allowing runners to reach second and third, but got out of the jam thanks to a couple of strikeouts. He had his first 1-2-3 inning in the fourth to maintain the lead into the fifth.
The fifth inning was much like the third, as Schuemann got on base again, this time by a single. He wheeled his way around to third on a pair of steals, setting him up on the corner with two outs. Montgomery was there again, notching his second two-out RBI single, to pad the Eagle lead to 4-2 after five turns at bat.
Mattson had his second clean inning in the fifth, and the Eagle bats stayed hot in the sixth. Senior Jeremy Stidham (Colorado Springs, Colo.-Sand Creek (Colby C.C.)) smoked a one-out double, advancing to third on a groundout. This time it was freshman Drake Peggs (Knightstown, Ind.-Knightstown) with the two-out RBI single, and Eastern extended its lead to 5-2, chasing Houck after 5.2 innings. It was Peggs' first collegiate hit and RBI.
Hester entered the game in relief of Mattson in the sixth, and picked up where he left off, getting through a scoreless frame despite yielding a couple walks. Eastern kept up the offensive pressure, scoring in its third consecutive inning in the seventh.
Williams notched his second hit with an infield single, and he advanced later on a balk. Redshirt senior Mike Mioduszewski (Dexter, Mich.-Dexter) then grabbed his first hit of the season, setting up runners on the corners. Montgomery was able to drive in his third run, this time on a sacrifice fly, and Eastern found itself with a 6-2 lead going into the stretch.
Beaton entered to toss the seventh, and he held Mizzou scoreless for the sixth consecutive inning with a pair of strikeouts to maintain the four-run lead into the eighth inning. It went to seven scoreless innings after another clean frame in the eighth from the righty hurler. Delaplane would come on to pitch the ninth in a non-save situation. The veteran was sharp, striking out a pair to seal the four-run victory.
Eastern gets back at it tomorrow in Ft. Myers with a doubleheader against the Tigers. Game one is set for 1 p.m. while game two will commence at approximately 4 p.m. from City of Palms Park.
The bats for EMU (1-0) collected 10 hits spread amongst eight of the nine players in the starting lineup. Senior John Montgomery (Anaheim Hills, Calif.-JSerra) had three RBIs in a 2-for-3 game. Junior Brennan Williams (Commerce Township, Mich.-Walled Lake Northern) also had a pair of hits to go along with an RBI and two runs scored. Eastern did most of its damage against consensus preseason All-American Tanner Houck of Missouri (0-1), who finished the game with the loss after going 5.2 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits.
Meanwhile, the Eagle pitchers were in almost complete control after the first inning where starting pitcher Brent Mattson (Canton, Mich.-Canton) was tagged for a pair of runs. The righty settled down though, earning the win after going five, striking out four. EMU's bullpen then went the rest of the way, with sophomore Caleb Hester (Coloma, Mich.-Coloma), and seniors Matthew Beaton (Guelph, Ontario-Bishop Macdonnell Catholic) and Sam Delaplane (San Jose, Calif.-Leigh) combining for four clean innings, only allowing four hits and striking out five.
The Eagles had a great opportunity in the first inning after a one-out single from Williams, and capitalized on it. The junior advanced to third on a wild pickoff attempt with two outs, and came around to score after a passed ball, gifting EMU the 1-0 lead after the first half inning.
Mizzou had the immediate response with a pair of runs on four hits in the bottom of the first to take their first lead, 2-1 after the first inning. A scoreless second gave way to the third where EMU had the response.
Sophomore Max Schuemann (Portage, Mich.-Portage Northern), the nine hitter, had the key leadoff walk, and redshirt senior Marquise Gill (Paw Paw, Mich.-Paw Paw) followed with a sharp single to put runners on the corners. Gill then stole second, and Williams drove in the run with a sacrifice fly to tie it at two. With two outs, Montgomery came through in the clutch with an RBI single through the right side and EMU recaptured the lead, 3-2, heading into the bottom of the third.
There, Mattson got into a little trouble, allowing runners to reach second and third, but got out of the jam thanks to a couple of strikeouts. He had his first 1-2-3 inning in the fourth to maintain the lead into the fifth.
The fifth inning was much like the third, as Schuemann got on base again, this time by a single. He wheeled his way around to third on a pair of steals, setting him up on the corner with two outs. Montgomery was there again, notching his second two-out RBI single, to pad the Eagle lead to 4-2 after five turns at bat.
Mattson had his second clean inning in the fifth, and the Eagle bats stayed hot in the sixth. Senior Jeremy Stidham (Colorado Springs, Colo.-Sand Creek (Colby C.C.)) smoked a one-out double, advancing to third on a groundout. This time it was freshman Drake Peggs (Knightstown, Ind.-Knightstown) with the two-out RBI single, and Eastern extended its lead to 5-2, chasing Houck after 5.2 innings. It was Peggs' first collegiate hit and RBI.
Hester entered the game in relief of Mattson in the sixth, and picked up where he left off, getting through a scoreless frame despite yielding a couple walks. Eastern kept up the offensive pressure, scoring in its third consecutive inning in the seventh.
Williams notched his second hit with an infield single, and he advanced later on a balk. Redshirt senior Mike Mioduszewski (Dexter, Mich.-Dexter) then grabbed his first hit of the season, setting up runners on the corners. Montgomery was able to drive in his third run, this time on a sacrifice fly, and Eastern found itself with a 6-2 lead going into the stretch.
Beaton entered to toss the seventh, and he held Mizzou scoreless for the sixth consecutive inning with a pair of strikeouts to maintain the four-run lead into the eighth inning. It went to seven scoreless innings after another clean frame in the eighth from the righty hurler. Delaplane would come on to pitch the ninth in a non-save situation. The veteran was sharp, striking out a pair to seal the four-run victory.
Eastern gets back at it tomorrow in Ft. Myers with a doubleheader against the Tigers. Game one is set for 1 p.m. while game two will commence at approximately 4 p.m. from City of Palms Park.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mattson, Brent (1-0)
L: Tanner Houck (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Stidham, Jeremy 1
RBI: Williams, Brennan 1 ; Montgomery, John 3 ; Peggs, Drake 1
SF: Williams, Brennan 1 ; Montgomery, John 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gill, Marquise 1 ; Williams, Brennan 2 ; Stidham, Jeremy 1 ; Schuemann, Max 2
SB: Gill, Marquise 1 ; Schuemann, Max 2
CS: Peggs, Drake 1
Batting:
2B: Chris Cornelius 1 ; A.J. Lewis 1
RBI: Brett Bond 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Connor Brumfield 1 ; Chris Cornelius 1
CS: A.J. Lewis 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
3
AB
5
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
RHP
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RHP
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LHP
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RHP
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C/OF
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16th Annual EMU Baseball Golf Outing
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Oestrike Stadium Turf Replacement Time lapse
Friday, October 03
Oestrike Stadium Upgrades Reveal
Thursday, October 02