Friday, April 2
Indianapolis, Ind.
3 p.m.
Ball State University
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Butler
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Photo by: Jacob Musselman
Bullpen Delivers, Messina Goes Deep In Friday Win
April 02, 2021 | Baseball
INDIANAPOLIS - The Ball State baseball team got 6.0 shutout innings in a close game Friday, setting the stage for a clutch 3-run home run by Ross Messina as BSU defeated Butler 7-2 to open a non-conference series.
"It was a nice win for us - it was a tight game, their pitched did an outstanding job," BSU head coach Rich Maloney said. "Ty Johnson was really good - we needed that. Aaron Simpson and Nick Powell made great catches and Ross gave us the big one. It was a team effort - it took a lot of guys to get it done."
BROKE IT OPEN LATE: The game was tighter than the 7-2 final margin, with a 2-2 tie for nearly two hours before Ball State delivered the key hits. The go-ahead run came in the top of the 8th on an RBI single from Aaron Simpson that scored pinch runner Seth Wilson. With a 3-2 lead in the 9th, Messina put it away when he pulled a no-doubter home run out to left on a 3-2 pitch to make it 6-2. Three batters later, Peltier scored from first base on a triple by Nick Powell.
THAT MAKES SENSE: The five late runs that made the game a resounding Cards win continued a season-long trend of Ball State winning the late innings. Ball State has outscored opponents 22-7 in innings 8-9 this season. Whether that trend is a sign of maturity and experience or the character of this group - or both - is something Maloney touched on in his postgame comments.
"This is a veteran team that stays the course - they fight to the end," Maloney said. "They've done it all year and they did it in 2019. The character of the team is to grit it out. We just gotta keep battling."
JOHNNY B AND THE PEN: John Baker, the active D-I leader in strikeouts making his 47th career start, was his vintage self until hitting some trouble in the 4th inning. The first four batters of that inning reached as Butler tied the game 2-2. Freshman Ty Johnson came in and had his best college game in relief. Pitching just miles from his home, Johnson went 4.1 innings with six strikeouts to earn his second career win. Tyler Schweitzer pitched to two batters then Andre Orselli slammed the door for his third save. He got five of the seven batters he faced to seal the win.
DH SATURDAY: Ball State and Butler wil play two 9-inning games Saturday in Muncie beginning at 11 a.m. There is no general public attendance. Fans can follow on social media, live stats and by watching the live video stream.
"It was a nice win for us - it was a tight game, their pitched did an outstanding job," BSU head coach Rich Maloney said. "Ty Johnson was really good - we needed that. Aaron Simpson and Nick Powell made great catches and Ross gave us the big one. It was a team effort - it took a lot of guys to get it done."
BROKE IT OPEN LATE: The game was tighter than the 7-2 final margin, with a 2-2 tie for nearly two hours before Ball State delivered the key hits. The go-ahead run came in the top of the 8th on an RBI single from Aaron Simpson that scored pinch runner Seth Wilson. With a 3-2 lead in the 9th, Messina put it away when he pulled a no-doubter home run out to left on a 3-2 pitch to make it 6-2. Three batters later, Peltier scored from first base on a triple by Nick Powell.
THAT MAKES SENSE: The five late runs that made the game a resounding Cards win continued a season-long trend of Ball State winning the late innings. Ball State has outscored opponents 22-7 in innings 8-9 this season. Whether that trend is a sign of maturity and experience or the character of this group - or both - is something Maloney touched on in his postgame comments.
"This is a veteran team that stays the course - they fight to the end," Maloney said. "They've done it all year and they did it in 2019. The character of the team is to grit it out. We just gotta keep battling."
JOHNNY B AND THE PEN: John Baker, the active D-I leader in strikeouts making his 47th career start, was his vintage self until hitting some trouble in the 4th inning. The first four batters of that inning reached as Butler tied the game 2-2. Freshman Ty Johnson came in and had his best college game in relief. Pitching just miles from his home, Johnson went 4.1 innings with six strikeouts to earn his second career win. Tyler Schweitzer pitched to two batters then Andre Orselli slammed the door for his third save. He got five of the seven batters he faced to seal the win.
DH SATURDAY: Ball State and Butler wil play two 9-inning games Saturday in Muncie beginning at 11 a.m. There is no general public attendance. Fans can follow on social media, live stats and by watching the live video stream.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Johnson, Ty (2-1)
L: VORE, Jon (0-2)
S: Orselli, Andre (3)
Batting:
2B: Peltier, Ryan 1
3B: Powell, Nick 2
HR: Messina, Ross 1
RBI: Messina, Ross 3 ; Powell, Nick 2 ; Simpson, Aaron 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tellier, Adam 1 ; Conant, Justin 1 ; Messina, Ross 2 ; Wilson, Seth 1 ; Peltier, Ryan 2
SB: Messina, Ross 1 ; Wilson, Seth 1 ; Simpson, Aaron 1 ; Scheffler, Decker 1
Batting:
2B: BENNETT, Andy 2
RBI: BENNETT, Andy 2
Base Running:
RUNS: TAYLOR, KEENAN 1 ; HARWOOD, Dan 1
HBP: MATOS, Freddie 1 ; TAYLOR, KEENAN 1 ; MCELWAIN, Matt 1 ; MCGRATH, Brody 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
0
H
3
RBI
2
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
5
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
IF-OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
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