Eastern Kentucky University’s baseball team suffered a close defeat to visiting Marshall University, losing 13-11 in a 13-inning showdown on Tuesday at Earle Combs Stadium.
Trailing by one in the bottom of the eighth, EKU’s Logan Thomason initiated a rally after being hit by a pitch. Miguel Larreal drew a walk, and Will King hit a double down the left field line, barely evading the leaping third baseman. Thomason scored to tie the game at 9-9. With one out, Jalen Jones’ fly ball into center field allowed Larreal to tag and score the go-ahead run.
However, the Thundering Herd managed to tie the game in the top of the ninth with a sacrifice fly from Daniel Carinci. Marshall took the lead in the 10th inning on a bases-loaded walk by Owen Ayers. EKU’s Charlie Ludwick responded with a home run in the bottom of the 10th to tie the game once again.
Ultimately, Amari Bartee’s two-run single up the middle in the top of the 13th inning secured the win for the Thundering Herd.
The Colonels (15-21) scored in each of the first three innings, with Thomason opening the bottom of the first with a solo home run. Thomason’s homer marked his fourth in the last four games and the third time he led off a game with a home run for the Colonels during that span.
DJ Sullivan scored on an error in the bottom of the third, making the score 7-2. Marshall took the lead with a four-run streak in the sixth inning, featuring an RBI triple by Kebler Peralta and runs driven in by Eddie Leon and Gio Ferraro.
The Colonels fought back in the bottom of the sixth with Ludwick’s two-out RBI single to tie the game at 8-8. However, Marshall reclaimed the lead in the seventh when Peralta scored on a throwing error.
Thomason finished the game with an impressive 4-for-5 record, scoring four runs and one RBI, while Ludwick went 4-for-6 with one run and four RBIs.
Ayers led Marshall (15-19) with a 3-for-5 record, three walks, three runs, and two RBIs.
The Colonels will have a chance at redemption when they play at Marshall on Wednesday at 3 p.m.