Saturday, May 15
Muncie, Ind.
1 p.m.
Ball State University
31-15, 0
4
vs
9
Kent State
23-22, 0
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5
6
7
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H
E
Kent State
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0
0
0
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Ball State
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Photo by: Maeve Bradfield/Ball State Athletics
Cards Giveth, Taketh Away In Doubleheader Split
May 15, 2021 | Baseball
BSU tied for 1st place with 9 games left
MUNCIE - Leading 4-1 in the 6th of Saturday's first game, the Ball State baseball team gave up a crooked number late and lost 9-4. In the second game, the Cards trailed 7-6 late but rallied in the 6th inning to win 8-7. Comeback wins, giveback losses. At the end of the day, Ball State aims for a series win on Sunday and remains tied for 1st place in the MAC standings.
On the day, Noah Navarro went 4-for-7 with two home runs while five different Cards had two hits each.
GAME 1 - Kent State 9, Ball State 4 (BOX SCORE)
Noah Navarro hit two home runs and had three of Ball State's five hits but Kent State rallied late to beat Ball State. BSU led 4-1 when Kent got three runs in the top of the 6th and then went off for five runs in the 7th.Â
The production came from the back half of Kent State's batting order. Kent's Nos. 1-5 hitters went 2-for-19 but the Nos. 6-9 hitters had eight hits and scored six runs. Sam Thompson and Justin Kirby each had three RBIs.Â
Navarro, who is hitting .403 in MAC play, pulled a towering shot out to left field in the 1st inning as BSU went up 3-0 early. Kent State's Luke Albright settled in after that and put up zeroes until Navarro hit a ball out to right-center in the 5th inning.Â
Scouts were spread throughout the stands to see the showdown of BSU's Chayce McDermott and Albright, a battle of two top arms. McDermott pitched into the 6th and struck out nine, throwing a shutout until Kent's late rally. Albright recovered from BSU's early offense to pitching 6.0 innings with six strikeouts.Â
GAME 2 - Ball State 8, Kent State 7 (BOX SCORE)
Saturday's second game had everything, but in true 2021 Ball State fashion, the Cardinals survived and battled until Kool & The Gang's "Celebration" played over Ball Diamond. The Cardinals put up a 5-spot in the 1st inning and led until the top of the 5th. The Cardinals then tied the game in the bottom of the 5th.Â
In the 6th, Kent State took a 7-6 lead on a wacky error where the ball was thrown into the dugout by Ball State without calling time. A live ball thrown into the dugout is a two-base error at the time of the play, and a Kent State runner on 2nd base was awarded home. Staring at a deficit on a controversial play set the stage for another comeback, similar to pivotal wins earlier this season at Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan.Â
A Kent State error, a walk and a hit batter opened up the inning. Trenton Quartermaine smacked the game-winning, two-run single. The Cardinals then loaded the bases again and threatened to pad the lead but didn't score. In the 7th, BSU went to Lukas Jaksich. The lefty came out of the pen earlier in the day and struggled. Three hours later, he slammed the door with a 1-2-3 inning and earned his first save of the year.
Central Michigan also split on Saturday, so BSU and CMU are tied atop the standings at 23-8.Â
The Cards finish their series vs. Kent State Sunday at 1 p.m. Series at Ohio and vs. Miami are left on the schedule following this weekend.
On the day, Noah Navarro went 4-for-7 with two home runs while five different Cards had two hits each.
GAME 1 - Kent State 9, Ball State 4 (BOX SCORE)
Noah Navarro hit two home runs and had three of Ball State's five hits but Kent State rallied late to beat Ball State. BSU led 4-1 when Kent got three runs in the top of the 6th and then went off for five runs in the 7th.Â
The production came from the back half of Kent State's batting order. Kent's Nos. 1-5 hitters went 2-for-19 but the Nos. 6-9 hitters had eight hits and scored six runs. Sam Thompson and Justin Kirby each had three RBIs.Â
Navarro, who is hitting .403 in MAC play, pulled a towering shot out to left field in the 1st inning as BSU went up 3-0 early. Kent State's Luke Albright settled in after that and put up zeroes until Navarro hit a ball out to right-center in the 5th inning.Â
Scouts were spread throughout the stands to see the showdown of BSU's Chayce McDermott and Albright, a battle of two top arms. McDermott pitched into the 6th and struck out nine, throwing a shutout until Kent's late rally. Albright recovered from BSU's early offense to pitching 6.0 innings with six strikeouts.Â
GAME 2 - Ball State 8, Kent State 7 (BOX SCORE)
Saturday's second game had everything, but in true 2021 Ball State fashion, the Cardinals survived and battled until Kool & The Gang's "Celebration" played over Ball Diamond. The Cardinals put up a 5-spot in the 1st inning and led until the top of the 5th. The Cardinals then tied the game in the bottom of the 5th.Â
In the 6th, Kent State took a 7-6 lead on a wacky error where the ball was thrown into the dugout by Ball State without calling time. A live ball thrown into the dugout is a two-base error at the time of the play, and a Kent State runner on 2nd base was awarded home. Staring at a deficit on a controversial play set the stage for another comeback, similar to pivotal wins earlier this season at Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan.Â
A Kent State error, a walk and a hit batter opened up the inning. Trenton Quartermaine smacked the game-winning, two-run single. The Cardinals then loaded the bases again and threatened to pad the lead but didn't score. In the 7th, BSU went to Lukas Jaksich. The lefty came out of the pen earlier in the day and struggled. Three hours later, he slammed the door with a 1-2-3 inning and earned his first save of the year.
Central Michigan also split on Saturday, so BSU and CMU are tied atop the standings at 23-8.Â
The Cards finish their series vs. Kent State Sunday at 1 p.m. Series at Ohio and vs. Miami are left on the schedule following this weekend.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: ALBRIGHT, LUKE (6-4)
L: Jaksich, Lukas (7-2)
Batting:
2B: McNAMARA, MICHAEL 2 ; THOMPSON, SAM 1
HR: KIRBY, JUSTIN 1
RBI: McNAMARA, MICHAEL 2 ; THOMPSON, SAM 3 ; KIRBY, JUSTIN 3 ; REIFSNYDER, JAKE 1
Base Running:
RUNS: CAREW, BEN 1 ; MATHEWS, COLLIN 1 ; ELSEN, NICK 1 ; MIKNIS, JUSTIN 2 ; McNAMARA, MICHAEL 2 ; KIRBY, JUSTIN 2
SB: KIRBY, JUSTIN 1
Batting:
HR: Navarro, Noah 2
RBI: Navarro, Noah 3 ; Simpson, Aaron 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tellier, Adam 1 ; Navarro, Noah 2 ; Powell, Nick 1
HBP: Powell, Nick 2
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
2
H
3
RBI
3
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
LHP
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RHP
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