EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Bradley put together rallies in the middle and late innings of both games of a college baseball doubleheader Friday afternoon, sweeping South Dakota State by scores of 8-6 and 4-2 at Simmons Complex.
The Braves upped their overall record to 4-1, while SDSU dropped to 0-5 on the season.
Game 1
• Bradley 8, SDSU 6
Bradley overcame a four-run deficit, surging in the middle innings for an 8-6 victory over the Jackrabbits in the opener.
Trailing 4-0 entering the bottom of the fifth, the Braves got on the board on a two-run home run to left field by Luke Shadid off SDSU starter Brady Stover.
Bradley grabbed the lead with a four-run sixth inning against the Jackrabbit bullpen. Eli Rawlinson delivered the go-ahead run on a groundout and Keaton Rice followed with a run-scoring single for a 6-4 lead.
The Bradley lead grew to 8-4 in the seventh on a two-run single by Derek Bangert.
SDSU put together a rally in the top of the ninth. Gus Steiger singled and Tony Kjolsing drew a two-out walk before Newt Johnson plated both baserunners with a double to left field, cutting the deficit to 8-6. Josh Falk was hit by a pitch and Landon Badger walked to load the bases, but Bradley reliever Matthew Richey induced a groundout to end the game.
The game was scoreless until the Jackrabbits scored in the top of the fourth. Falk was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a wild pitch and took third on a fly ball before scoring on a single up the middle by Philip Jacobson.
The Jackrabbits added three runs in the fifth inning. Kolton Michalski opened the inning by reaching on an error and later scored on a sacrifice y by Nick Smith. Tony Kjolsing and Johnson added run-scoring singles later in the frame.
Bradley finished with a 15-9 advantage in hits, led by Andrew Ivelia with three hits. Steiger was 3-for-4 with two runs scored, while Johnson and Jacobson each tallied two hits.
Stover struck out six, walked one and surrendered five hits in allowing two runs over five innings. Bryce Johnson finished on the mound for SDSU with two scoreless innings.
Brave starter Cole Cook earned the win after striking out six in six innings.
Game 2
• Bradley 4, SDSU 2
The Braves grabbed the lead with a three-run seventh inning and added a run in the eighth to complete the doubleheader sweep.
Bradley, which only had five hits through the first six innings, tallied four hits in the seventh inning, starting with a Shadid double to left. K. Rice scored the first run of the inning on a wild pitch and Shadid scored the tying run on a single by Mangieri. Dougherty followed two batters later with a single that plated Mangieri for a 3-2 lead.
Mangieri, who was 3-for-5 to lead the Braves’ 11-hit attack, added an RBI single in the eighth.
SDSU scored in each of the first two innings to take an early 2-0 lead. Nick Smith led off the game with a single and scored on Falk’s single up the middle for the first run, while Anthony Schneider connected on a solo home run to lead off the second inning. Falk led SDSU’s seven-hit effort with two hits.
Jackrabbit starter Tyler Olmstead pitched four shutout innings, striking out three and walking one. Korey Kuhlmann, the third of three SDSU pitchers, took the loss.
Alex Gray threw four innings of shutout relief to pick up the victory for Bradley. Brian Schrimmer struck out ve in two scoreless innings to earn the save.
Up next
The two squads are scheduled to complete their three-game series with a game at 11 a.m. today.
Notes: Friday’s games marked the first-ever meetings on the baseball diamond between SDSU and Bradley. ... Kjolsing has hit safely in all five games this season and has reached base safely in 19 consecutive games dating back to last season. ... Schneider’s home run was the ninth of his career. ... Falk notched the first multi-hit game of his Jackrabbit career. ... Skyler Wenninger and Derek Hackman each recorded their first doubles of the season in Game 2.
Photo from www.gojacks.com.
