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9
Western Illinois WIU 0-4
10
Winner Mississippi State MS 2-1
Western Illinois WIU
0-4
9
Final
10
Mississippi State MS
2-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E
Western Illinois WIU 0 0 0 3 0 2 0 0 4 0 0 9 11 3
Mississippi State MS 0 0 0 0 0 5 1 3 0 0 1 10 12 3

W: Spencer Price (1-0) L: Drake, Javin (0-1)

Game Recap: Baseball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Western Loses in Extras on Sunday

Leathernecks tie the game up with four runs in the ninth, lose in 11 innings

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Western Illinois took an early lead on Mississippi State, rallied for four runs in the ninth to tie, but eventually lost on a walk-off single in the 11th inning on Sunday (Feb. 19), 10-9. The loss dropped the Leathernecks to 0-4 on the opening weekend.
 
In the second inning, Adam McGinnis led off with a single and took second when Chris Tschida walked. But a missed attempt on a hit-and-run eventually left a runner stranded at second. Western broke through with three runs in the fourth. Drue Galassi walked and went to third on a failed pickoff attempt throwing error by starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft. McGinnis lined a RBI single to make it 1-0.
 
Nick Schrader singled and Justin Fitzpatrick followed with a RBI single. Schrader scored on a wild pitch to make it 3-0 WIU.
 
Two more runs in the sixth made it 5-0. Schrader walked, took second on a wild pitch and scored on CJ Schaeffer's RBI single. He eventually scored after Roman Visintine doubled and a wild pitch brought him home.
 
The Bulldogs finally found an answer to Leatherneck starter Ian Koch. The sophomore cruised through the first five innings, getting an inning-ending double play in the third and taking advantage of two pickoffs to keep MSU off the scoreboard. In the sixth, MSU sent nine batters to the plate. A one out throwing error helped the rally, but Koch got a key strikeout for out number two on Cole Gordon.
 
From there back-to-back 2-run singles tied the game, as all five MSU runs that inning were unearned.
 
Ryan Gridley added a RBI single in the seventh and three more runs scored in the eighth. Javin Drake made his WIU debut, and facing the bases loaded and no one out in the eighth got out of a jam. He got a comebacker to the mound and force out at the plate. Then the freshman got back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat.
 
Western opened the ninth with a walk to Visintine, single from Mitch Ellis and walk to Deion Thompson. Galassi drew a bases loaded walk to make it 9-6. McGinnis hit a grounder back to the pitcher, but Blake Smith's throw home went wide and two runs scored. Tschida brought home the tying run on a groundout.
 
However, the Leathernecks could not push across the go-ahead run in the ninth, 10th or 11th inning with a runner in scoring position each frame.
 
Drake gave up a walk to start the 11th then hit Gridley. Brent Rooker lined a walk-off single to left field to end the game.
 
McGinnis, who missed both games on Saturday, had two hits in his return for Western as 10 different Leathernecks recorded a hit. Galassi and Schrader scored two runs each.
 
Koch went 5.2 innings, allowing five unearned runs on seven hits. He walked two and struck out four. Preston Church gave up a run on two hits in 1.1 innings. Drake (0-1) suffered the loss with a run on two hits in three innings while striking out five – the most by a Leatherneck pitcher in the four games.
 
Hunter Stovall had three hits while Gridley and Rooker added two each. Spencer Price earned the win with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief, the seventh Bulldog pitcher to throw.
 
Western returns to action Friday (Feb. 24) with a three-game series at Southeast Missouri.
 
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