Baseball Splits Two Games at RussMatt Invitational

Saturday, February 27

Winter Haven, Fla.

11:00 AM

Ball State University

2-4

Kent State

2-3

Kent State

Ball State

February 28, 2016 | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score - Game 1 Box Score - Game 2

By: Ball State Athletics

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – The Ball State baseball team split two games on day two at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational Saturday. In the morning contest, Kent State pulled away late to earn an 8-3 win. The Cardinals bounced back to win the nightcap over Milwaukee, 9-3.

In the evening game, sophomore pitcher Brendan Burns kept Milwaukee off the board through six innings. Burns held the Panthers to four hits and struck out five batters to tally the win.

The Cardinals (3-4) would get all the runs they would need in the top of the second when they pushed four players across home plate. Ball State scored all four of those runs after Milwaukee got the first two outs of the inning. CJ Alexander, Sean Kennedy, Scott Tyler and Matt Eppers kept the inning alive with consecutive singles to score the first two runs. A Milwaukee error then allowed two more runs to score.

Ball State put the game out of reach in the top of the seventh when Alexander notched his first collegiate home run, a three-run shot to right field.

Junior Caleb Stayton continued to produce as he went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs. He leads the team with a .414 batting average and 12 RBIs through seven games. Alex Call added two hits and scored two runs against Milwaukee.

Game one was decided in the eighth inning when Kent State (2-3) scored five runs. Ball State opened the scoring in the second thanks to Ryan Spaulding's RBI double. After Kent State took a 2-1 lead, the Cardinals evened the score in the bottom of the sixth behind an Alex Maloney RBI hit.

The Golden Flashes responded with a run in the seventh and then five runs on four hits in the eighth to pull away.

Junior Kevin Marnon, making his second start of the season on the mound, went six-plus innings for Ball State, struck out six and allowed two earned runs.

Ball State wraps up play at the RussMatt Invitational tomorrow morning, Feb. 28, with a game against George Washington. Game time is set for 11 a.m.

For the most up-to-date information on the Ball State baseball team, please follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateBB and @CoachMaloney.