Boxscores
NKU 5, UIndy 0
UIndy 3, NKU 2
INDIANAPOLIS- UIndy hung on for a 3-2 win over Northern Kentucky in the second game of a doubleheader to earn a split in a battle of the top two teams in the Great Lakes Valley Conference East division at Greyhound Park Saturday afternoon. The Norse blanked the Hounds 5-0 in the opener, but
Andrew Werner (Washington, Ill./Washington Community) helped the Greyhounds out of a major jam in the final inning of game two to keep Indianapolis atop the division.
NKU (21-16, 10-4 GLVC East) got a solid start from Sean Munninghoff in game one. He faced just four batters over the minimum and got a whopping 21 groundball outs in earning the shutout win. UIndy's
Jordan Tiegs (Woodstock, Ontario, Canada/Huron Park) also pitched well, but was tagged for the loss after throwing eight innings of six-hit ball. He was charged with three earned runs and struck out five.
It wound up being a pitcher's duel, but the first inning didn't foreshadow that outcome. NKU had the bases loaded on the first three batters of the game, all without the benefit of a hit. Tiegs then forced a key popup, struck a man out and got out of it altogether with a groundout to short. UIndy's first frame looked promising as well when
Justin Russell (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson) singled sharply to center and
Adam Akin (Evansville, Ind./North) was hit by a pitch with none down. A flyout and a double-play groundout snuffed the threat, keeping the game scoreless.
It would remain that way until the Norse turned a leadoff walk into a single run in the third and then tacked-on another in the fifth. The eighth inning was the Greyhounds' undoing as three runners scored with the help of a pair of errors to open a 5-0 NKU advantage.
Akin coaxed a walk, the first of the day against Munninghoff, to open the ninth but a double play and a flyout gave the visitors the win.
Russell,
Chase Kittinger (Carmi, Ill./Carmi White County) and
Travis Capps (Indianapolis, Ind./Warren Central) all had a hit apiece for the Greyhounds in game one.
The Hounds (26-13, 8-2 GLVC East) wasted little time in gaining momentum in the second game, scoring two in the first inning. Russell laced a triple to left center and two walks followed to load the bases. A double-play groundout and an error helped plate the runs staking starter
Cory Rupert (Indianapolis, Ind./Southport) to an early lead.
An insurance run proved to be big in the sixth when Capps tripled and scored on an RBI single by
Scott Lawley (New Palestine, Ind./New Palestine). Rupert entered the seventh after pitching his way out of some jams, but was effective when he needed to be, blanking NKU through six innings of work. He squandered just three hits, but walked four heading into the final inning. After he walked the first hitter,
Travis Kempton (Beech Grove, Ind./Beech Grove) came on in relief. Werner was summoned from the bullpen two batters later with a bases-loaded, nobody out predicament. He promptly got a flyout to center, then walked in the first run with one out. Another popup fell between second and rightfield, but Lawley was able to corral it in time to get a force out for the second out and a 3-2 UIndy advantage. Lawley would make the final play of the game a batter later, handling a grounder and firing to first for the doubleheader split.
It marked the first save for Werner and pushed Rupert's record to 6-1 this season. The Hounds had just five hits in game two, one apiece from Russell,
Ben Sondgeroth (Rock Falls, Ill./Rock Falls),
Andrew Armour (New Palestine, Ind./New Palestine), Capps and Lawley.
The two teams will meet up again Sunday for a pair of games with first pitch slated for 1:00 p.m. at Greyhound Park.