Ball State University
30-15, 0
Northern Illinois
14-31, 0
Baker, Blasts Make A Ball State Win
May 04, 2019 | Baseball
Messina, Orselli homer as BSU moves to 14-4
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Baker, who improved to 6-1 on the year, took a no-hitter into the 7th inning and only allowed 5 baserunners on the day. It was his 4th quality start in his last 5 outings and his 7th start of the year allowing 1 or fewer earned runs. Head coach Rich Maloney said he remembered maybe a few hard-hit balls off Baker all day.
"John was splendid," Maloney said. "He kept the Northern Illinois hitters off-balance with a 4-pitch mix. He was excellent."
Baker was backed by an early home run by Ross Messina, his team-high 7th of the year. Messina smacked a 2-2 pitch over the fence in left-center in the 1st inning to give Ball State a 1-0 lead. Freshman DH Andre Orselli homered in the 4th to make it 2-0 and that's all Ball State (30-15) would need on the day. Chase Sebby and William Baker celebrated the 2019 BSU Commencement with a sac fly and RBI single, respectively, to help clinch the game.
Another new grad, Nick Floyd, got the final 6 outs for his 3rd save of the season. Floyd retired 6 of the 7 batters he faced.
"Nick did a nice job. We got some good pitching and timely hitting and that's all we needed," Maloney said. "We played an all-around solid game. I'm very encouraged about our pitching, this is the way I thought we'd be pitching and winning."Â
The series finale at NIU will be Sunday at 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. local). Fans can follow the Cardinals on social media at @BallStateBB or listen to the live broadcast online. Kyle Nicolas is scheduled to start Sunday's finale.
CONSISTENT WINNER
In 14 seasons under Rich Maloney, Ball State has now won 30+ games in all 14 seasons. Ball State owns 13 seasons this century with 30 or more victories.Â
"I'm proud of all my teams for that," Maloney said. "It's a big positive."
#BALLSTATEGRAD
Four Cardinals - Chase Sebby, William Baker, John Ricotta and Nick Floyd - graduated on Saturday. A fifth Card, Griffin Hulecki, will finish his degree during the summer.
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Bottom 1st —-> 1-0 Cards
— Ball State Baseball (@BallStateBB) May 4, 2019
Let's have a look at our 2019 grads! #BallstateGrad #BallState100 pic.twitter.com/LRwmw8t2FJ
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Baker, John (6-1)
L: LASIEWICZ (5-4)
S: Floyd, Nick (5)
Batting:
2B: Ricotta, John 2
HR: Messina, Ross 1 ; Orselli, Andre 1
RBI: Baker, William 1 ; Messina, Ross 1 ; Orselli, Andre 1 ; Sebby, Chase 1
SH: Simpson, Aaron 1 ; Murphy, Mack 1
SF: Sebby, Chase 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Messina, Ross 1 ; Orselli, Andre 1 ; Ricotta, John 1 ; Conant, Justin 1
CS: Baker, William 1 ; Messina, Ross 1
Batting:
2B: DUNHAM 1
RBI: LARSON 1
SF: LARSON 1
Base Running:
RUNS: DROBUSHEVICH 1
SB: MCKERMITT 1
PO: DROBUSHEVICH 1
