Early offense not enough in series setback

Saturday, March 23

Wichita, Kan.

2 p.m.

University of Memphis

10-11, 0

Wichita State

11-11, 0

Memphis

Wichita State

Photo by: Matthew Smith

Mar 23, 2019 | Baseball

Box Score

WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita State erased an early 3-0 Memphis lead and claimed the series with an 8-4 victory Saturday afternoon at Eck Stadium.

The Tigers (10-11, 0-2) plated a run in the second and a pair in the third, but the Shockers chipped away, taking the lead in the sixth inning and securing the victory.

On the mound, Alex Hicks received the loss. After surrendering only three hits through five innings, Hicks struggled in the sixth as the Shockers rallied.

Alec Trela began the scoring with a leadoff home run, his second of the season, to start the second inning. In the third, Memphis extended its lead after Jason Santana, Ben Brooks and Colton Neel led off the frame with a trio of singles. Two batters later, Keith Stepter posted a two-out, 2-RBI single to push the Tigers' advantage to 3-0.

Santana finished the day 2-for-3 with a run scored. Brooks and Neel also recorded multi-hit games behind 2-for-5 outings, with Neel adding an RBI to his performance.

The Shockers responded with a 2-run home run in the bottom of the third to close the gap. Hicks then ran into trouble in the sixth inning when the home side claimed the lead for the remainder of the game. After a groundout to begin the frame, the Shockers tallied five consecutive hits and added a sacrifice fly to go ahead 5-3.

After the sides traded a run in the seventh, the Tigers offered a rally in the top of the eighth inning as the first two batters reached base via a walk. That would be all as Wichita State's Mitchell Walters ended the threat with a pair of strikeouts and a groundout.

Memphis will seek to salvage the series on Sunday at 1 p.m.