Movin' On! No. 25 Kent State Baseball Advances To 2011 MAC Tournament Winners' Bracket Final
5/26/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio -- The Kent State baseball team overcame a two-run deficit and a long rain delay to advance to the 2011 Mid-American Conference Tournament's winners' bracket final by pulling out a 5-4 victory over Eastern Michigan today (May 26) at VA Memorial Stadium.
"I told the team it was like watching two games," said seventh-year head coach and MAC Coach of the Year Scott Stricklin. "After the rain delay, we had a rejuvenated team. We had energy, our body language changed and we had good at-bats. That was our biggest win of the year, and now we have to come back ready to do it again tomorrow."
Ranked No. 25 in the nation by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and seeded No. 1 in the double-elimination MAC Tournament, the Golden Flashes (41-14), who have won 32 of their last 37 games and seven straight conference tournament games dating back to 2010, will have the opportunity to play for a sixth consecutive trip to the conference title game Friday (May 27) at 4 p.m. against the winner of the 9 a.m. elimination game between No. 4-seeded Northern Illinois and No. 5-seeded Eastern Michigan.
Trailing the Eagles (35-21), 4-2, after five innings of play, Kent State responded by taking the lead back with a three-run sixth inning that was halted for an hour and 40 minutes due to rain. Redshirt junior left fielder Joe Koch (Youngstown, Ohio) drew a one out walk, then advanced to second on an Eastern Michigan throwing error that also allowed freshman second baseman Derek Toadvine (Springfield, Ohio) to reach safely. After the skies opened up and put a stop to the action for a bit, Kent State's bats awakened. Sophomore center fielder Evan Campbell (Beloit, Ohio) drew a walk to fill the bases with Flashes. Junior shortstop Jimmy Rider (Venetia, Pa.) delivered with a two-RBI double to left that drove in Koch and Toadvine and tied the game. Junior third baseman and First Team All-MAC selection Travis Shaw (Washington Court House, Ohio) gave Kent State a 5-4 lead on a sacrifice fly to center that allowed Campbell to tag up and score.
"I was just up there trying to get a good pitch to hit and drive it and get a few runs in," said Rider of his game-tying double. "I was pretty happy with the result."
Kent State received outstanding relief work from sophomore right-handed pitcher Casey Wilson (Sagamore Hills, Ohio), who tossed four scoreless frames of no-hit ball and allowed only a walk while recording two strikeouts in earning his third save of the season.
"I went fastball-curveball-curveball most of the at-bats and just got ahead in the counts," said Wilson. "I felt real good, about the best I've felt all year."
Wilson relieved senior southpaw starting pitcher and MAC Pitcher of the Year Kyle Hallock (Sandusky, Ohio), who fanned three over five innings to become Kent State's first pitcher to reach double-digit wins in a single season in five years with a 10-4 mark, tying Ted Rose (1996) and Chad Wagler (2006) for the second-most pitching victories in a single season in program history. Hallock increased his career victories total to 22, tying Brian Schubert (1987-90) and Wagler (2003-06) for fifth-most all-time in Kent State history.
Kent State landed the contest's first punch with a run in the top of the first. Campbell drew a leadoff walk, stole second and then scored on a one-out base hit up the middle by Shaw. Â
The Eagles countered by tying the game in home half of the first frame when junior center fielder Brent Ohrman hit a one-out double up the middle and scored courtesy of a single up the middle by senior second baseman Zack Leonard.
Eastern Michigan grabbed a 2-1 lead in the ensuing inning as freshman first baseman Lee Longo sent a two-out solo shot over the left field wall.
After three scoreless innings, Kent State took advantage of a bases-loaded situation to even the score at two-all. Â Toadvine got things started by coaxing a walk, then stealing second. Rider placed a one-out single into left to put runners on the corners for the Flashes. Shaw coaxed a walk to fill the bags, and senior right fielder and First Team All-MAC pick Ben Klafczynski (Granger Township, Ohio) bumped Toadvine home by drawing another walk.
Unfortunately for Kent State, no more runs came out of having the bases loaded in the top half of the fifth as a strikeout and a groundout put an end to the rally. The Eagles made the Flashes pay in the bottom of the inning when Longo smashed his second solo home run of the game over the left field wall to put Eastern Michigan up 3-2. Â Ohrman tacked on another run one out later by drawing a walk and then scoring on a wild pitch. Â
Shaw, Rider and Toadvine led the way offensively for the Flashes, accounting for two hits apiece.
