Ball State University Athletics
Louisville 4, BSU 2
March 19, 2006 | Baseball
Ball State scored two runs in the top of the first inning as senior first baseman Brad Miller (Muncie, Ind./Central) singled to right center, driving in junior right fielder Eric Earnhart (Urbana, Ohio/Urbana), who singled to left center and was pushed to second on a sac bunt by senior catcher Matt Singleton (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead). Senior center fielder Mike Sullivan (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) singled and moved to third on Miller's single, then scored on a sac fly by senior second baseman Kyle Dygert (Angola, Ind./Angola).
Louisville added a run in the bottom of the second inning as Daniel Burton posted a bunt single then reached third on a throwing error. Burton scored on a groundout to first base by Jorge Castillo.
In the bottom of the third, U of L scored two runs on a double to right field by Logan Johnson, who drove in Nick Haley and Chris Cates after each of them notched singles.
Cates scored his second run of the game in the fifth after reaching on a fielder's choice, stealing second and then crossing home plate on a double to left center by Johnson.
Earnhart doubled down the left-field line in the eighth, but BSU couldn't register a run.
Junior Ryan DeGeeter (Warsaw, Ind./Warsaw) (1-3) made his fifth start of the season, going seven innings with five hits, three earned runs, five strikeouts and four walks in the loss.
Junior Richie Fralick (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) took the mound in the bottom of the eighth inning and posted one walk in the inning.
In the top of the ninth inning, Sullivan singled to the shortstop, followed by a single up the middle by Miller. Dygert moved them both up one base with a bunt single, but a double play on a flyout and pickoff at second, followed by a groundout to second base ended the game at 4-2 in favor of U of L.
Louisville owns an 8-7 all-time series edge after winning Friday's game before Ball State came back and won Saturday's twinbill with scores of 5-3 and 6-4.
The Cardinals travel to Cincinnati (12-6) on Wednesday for a 4 p.m. game and then open up their 2006 Mid-American Conference schedule Friday with a three-game series at Akron (5-11).
