Young arms lead Jackrabbits past WIU

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – South Dakota State pitchers Nic McCay and Bret Barnett combined for 14 strikeouts and the Jackrabbit offense capitalized on three Western Illinois errors to win the decisive game of a three-game Summit League baseball series, 7-4, Sunday afternoon at UIS Baseball Field.

The Jacks improved to 9-9 overall and 2-1 in league play. WIU dropped to 5-12 overall and 1-2 in The Summit League.

SDSU tallied the first run of the game in the third inning as Derek Hackman walked, advanced to second on a balk and scored on an infield error.

The Jacks took advantage of two Western Illinois errors in the fifth inning, scoring five times to go up 6-0. Nick Smith and Logan Holtz each plated one run with RBI singles, while Steiger plated another with a groundout. The other two runs scored on a wild pitch and when Smith stole home on the back end of a double steal.

Smith and SDSU were aggressive on the bases all day as the Jacks racked up six stolen bases, including three by Smith.

McCay, a freshman right-hander from Carlisle, Iowa, kept the Leathernecks off the board until the bottom of the fifth, when Drue Galassi connected on a three-run home run down the right-field line. Galassi accounted for the other WIU run with a solo homer in the seventh. However, McCay did post his 10th and final strikeout of the game in the seventh as he fanned at least one batter in all seven frames, including striking out the side in order in the fourth. He walked two, hit a batter and surrendered five hits en route to his team-leading third win of the season.

Barnett, a sophomore from Indianola, Iowa, continued his strong start to the season by striking out all three men he faced in the bottom of the eighth, then struck out Galassi with a man on in the ninth to record his second save of the series and third of the season.

Gus Steiger added an insurance run for the Jacks in the top of the ninth with a solo home run to left-center to lead off the inning. It was his team-leading third home run of the season.

SDSU managed only five hits and was led by Braeden Brown’s two hits in four trips. The Jacks tied a season high by drawing nine walks.

Galassi was the lone Leatherneck player with more than one hit as he went 2-for-4 with four RBIs as WIU notched six hits.

UP NEXT – SDSU’s game scheduled for Wednesday at Creighton has been postponed due to concerns over weather and field conditions. No makeup date has been determined. The Jacks now are slated to return to action Friday at Oral Roberts, with first pitch set for 6 p.m.

Saturday

• SDSU 7, Western Illinois 6

Tyler Olmstead carried a shutout into the ninth inning before the Jacks held off a furious Western Illinois comeback.

A junior from Sioux Falls, Olmstead struck out six and walked only two in earning his first victory of the season. He exited after giving up a two-run single to Drue Galassi with one out in the bottom of the ninth.

Reliever Alex Marro gave up an RBI double to Nolan Ard, a sacrifice fly and a two-run home run to Deion Thompson before Bret Barnett came on to record the final out for the save in a second consecutive game in which the Jacks nearly squandered a big ninth-inning lead.

SDSU broke a scoreless deadlock with a pair of runs in the fifth inning. Nick Smith scored on a sacrifice fly by Braeden Brown before Josh Falk’s single plated Gus Steiger. Brown and Falk accounted for three more Jacks runs in the seventh as Brown plated one with a groundout and Falk added a two-run single up the middle that scored both Smith and Steiger, knocking out Leatherneck starter Javin Drake.

The Jacks added what proved to be two valuable insurance runs in the top of the eighth as Luke Ira doubled in the first run and later scored on the back end of a double steal.

WIU held an 11-9 advantage in hits and was led by Justin Fitzpatrick’s three hits in four trips to the plate. Steiger was 3-for-5 for the Jacks, while Falk and Ira each tallied two hits.

• Western Illinois 10, SDSU 6

WIU again rallied from an early deficit to salvage a doubleheader split.

The Jacks jumped out of the gates quickly, hitting home runs in each of the first three innings to build a 5-0 lead. Falk started the scoring with his second home run of the season, a two-run shot down the right-field line, while freshman Drew Beazley connected on his first collegiate home run with a solo shot to right in the top of the season.

Steiger upped the lead to 5-0 with a two-run homer to center in the third.

The Leathernecks put up three runs in the fourth inning against SDSU starter Ryan Froom, then tied the game at 5-all with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings. Alex Dorethy started the rally in the fourth and added an RBI single in the fifth. The sixth-inning run scored on the Jacks’ lone error of the game.

SDSU regained a 6-5 lead momentarily in the top of the eighth as Beazley doubled with one out and scored on a sacrifice fly by Ira.

Galassi plated Steve McShane with the tying run in the bottom of the eighth on a double.

The winning rally for WIU began with a leadoff walk to Kevin Raisbeck, who later moved up a base on a balk. Thompson reached on a bunt single and Bailey Montgomery was intentionally walked after Thompson stole second. That set the stage for C.J. Schaeffer, who belted a grand slam to right field to end the game.

Schaeffer was one of three Leathernecks with two hits as WIU posted a 10-9 advantage in hits. Logan Holtz and Beazley each finished with two hits for the Jacks.

Froom struck out four and walked three over 5 1/3 innings as he finished with a no-decision. Cody Carlson took the loss after surrendering the final five runs over three innings, walking one and striking out five.

Jack Carberry allowed only one run over the final three innings in relief to earn the win for Western Illinois.