MARION, Ill. – The Lindenwood baseball team (30-27, 13-14 OVC) dropped their second game of the OVC Tournament on Wednesday afternoon with a narrow 2-1 defeat against Southeast Missouri (39-16, 18-9 OVC). A classic pitcher's dual from the start, the game remained scoreless entering the bottom of the eighth before a pair of solo home runs lifted the Redhawks to victory.Â
Seth Benes was fantastic on the mound for Lindenwood, giving up two runs on six hits with three strikeouts through 7.1 innings of work. It was the seventh time this season Benes tossed at least seven innings while surrendering two or fewer runs.
The Lions outhit the Redhawks 7-6 in the contest, with
Matt Graf leading Lindenwood with two hits in three at bats.
Sam Driscoll drove in LU's lone run with an RBI base hit in the ninth inning.
How it Happened
Benes carried a no-hitter into the fourth inning before Ryan Lopetegui recorded SEMO's first knock with a two-out single. However, he was caught stealing at second base to end the inning.
The Redhawks loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the fifth behind a pair of base hits followed by a walk, but Benes was able to get a ground ball to escape the inning with the shutout still intact.
Following two more scoreless innings, Lindenwood moved a runner into scoring position in the top of the eighth following singles by
Matt Graf and
Owen Ralph but were unable to bring in the go-ahead run.
SEMO finally broke the tie in the bottom of the eighth with a Brooks Kettering leadoff home run, and following a flyout, added an insurance run with another solo blast, this time off the bat of Cal Sullivan.
The Lions got one run back in the top of the ninth with
Will Geary singling and advancing to second before scoring on a
Sam Driscoll two-out base hit that brought the go-ahead run to the plate. However, Lindenwood was unable to recapture Tuesday's late game magic as the Redhawks were able to end the game with a strikeout.
Next Up
The Lions now fall to the loser's bracket and will play in an elimination game on Thursday at 8:00 p.m. Their opponent is to be determined.
