By ISU Sports Information
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Illinois State baseball team came up on the short end of a 13-10 score in a back-and-forth game against Belmont Sunday, the Redbirds’ final game of a three-game series at E.S. Rose Park, to open the 2016 season.
The Redbirds were able to overcome an early 5-1 deficit by scoring five runs in the top of the fifth, but Belmont (2-1) slowly rebuilt its lead, before adding four insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth. Illinois State (1-2) scored four runs in the top of the ninth, and brought the potential game-tying run to the plate, but was unable to continue the rally.
Jared Hendren went 3-for-5 with two doubles and two RBIs, and Brian Rodemoyer homered for the second game in a row to pace the Redbird offense. The Redbirds allowed a season-high 13 runs, as four of five Redbird relievers allowed at least one run after starter David Meade was tagged with five runs over the first 3.1 innings.
“Across the board, we just didn’t pitch very well,” said Illinois State head coach Bo Durkac. “We scored some runs late, but we had some at-bats early in the game where we just couldn’t find a way to put something in play and put some pressure on the defense, so it was kind of a disappointing day for us.”
Belmont got on the scoreboard first, in the bottom of the first inning, when Hunter Holland plated Ben Kocher on a groundout. The Redbirds tied it in the third when Daniel Dwyer chased Sean Beesley home with a single to right field.
Belmont seemed to build a comfortable lead when it scored four runs in the fourth inning, thanks to two-run single from Clay Payne and a two-run double from Kocher. But the Redbirds answered promptly, scoring five runs the next half inning. Hendren drove in the first run with a double down the left-field line.Jean Ramirez followed moments later with a two-run double, before Rodemoyer finished the rally with a two-run home run to left field.
Illinois State’s five-run fifth gave the Redbirds a 6-5 advantage, but Belmont knotted the score up again in the bottom half of the frame an RBI groundout from Tyler Walsh.
The Bruins added two runs in the sixth, with RBIs from Rafael Bournigal and Kocher, and one more in the seventh, on a run-scoring double from Brennan Washington.
Belmont seemingly put the game away in the eighth, with four insurance runs, as Washington drew a bases-loaded walk to set the table for a bases-clearing triple from Walsh.
The Redbirds mounted a rally in the ninth, however, with a two-run double by Hendren and a two-run single from Rodemoyer. Illinois State eventually brought the potential game-tying run to the plate, but the game ended there on a fly out to center field.
Hendren led the Redbird bats with three hits, while Dwyer, Rodemoyer and Owen Miller collected two hits each. Rodemoyer tallied four RBIs in the game, and finished the three-game series with 10 RBIs to start the season.
Meade, the Redbird starting pitcher, got off to a good start before running into trouble in the fourth. He pitched 3.1 innings, allowing five runs on seven hits. He struck out three and walked none.
The Redbirds return to action Thursday when they begin a four-game series at Oregon.
