MACOMB, IL – J.R. Heavilin provided a well-needed spark in the third inning, but it was not enough as Western Illinois fell to SIUE 11-9 in the second game of the series. WIU moves to 7-27 on the season and 3-11 in OVC play.
Tyler Kapruan came out dealing to start the day. Back-to-back one, two, three innings highlighted the six innings from the Leatherneck starter. The Cougars attacked for a pair of singles to start the third inning. An error on Western Illinois brought in a Cougar run, and SIUE added two more with a double later in the inning.
Down 3-0 heading into the bottom half of the third, WIU put together an offensive surge on the Cougar starter Alex Rodriguez. Max Slavens started the inning with a double down the left-field line. Adam Juran followed with a walk as WIU had their first two batters reach base. Western Illinois loaded the bases as Kyree Alexander reached first on a Cougar error as Juran and Slavens advanced 90 feet. With two out, Chris Hege hit a hard ground ball off of the third baseman's glove, resulting in two runs coming in on the error. Tied back at two, J.R. Heavilin took advantage of the extra out as he demolished the baseball over the left-center fence for a three-run home run as WIU took a 5-3 lead.
Kapraun kept dealing as he worked a three-up, three-down fourth inning and retired three straight batters in the fifth after issuing a leadoff walk. SIUE worked a run off of Kapraun in the 6th as his day finished with a 5-4 lead. SIUE struck for two more in the top of the 7th, taking a 6-5 lead. Western Illinois responded in the bottom half. Chris Hege doubled with two out and advanced to third on a single by Heavilin. Trevor Leon grabbed the RBI as he scored Hege with a bloop single to center field, scoring Hege.
SIUE offense kept hitting and taking advantage of WIU mistakes. The Cougars plated three runs in the 8th and two in the 9th as they held an 11-6 lead. Western Illinois did not go down quietly in their final at-bats. Kyree Alexander reached on an error to start the inning and moved around on the double by Liam Bushey as WIU trimmed the deficit to 11-7. Chris Hege followed Bushey, reaching on an error by the shortstop as the Leathernecks had runners on the corners. Trevor Leon brought in the eighth run of the afternoon with a sacrifice fly as Bushey scored as the game was 11-8. Justin Jang drove in the final Western Illinois run as he grounded into a fielder's choice that scored Hege as WIU fell 11-9
J.R. Heavilin stayed red hot at the plate today as he went 2-3 with a home run and three RBIs. Heavilin also drew two of the Leatherneck's eight walks. Adam Juran, Liam Bushey, Chris Hege, and Max Slavens all had extra-base hits on the afternoon.
Western Illinois and SIUE finish their three-game series tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.
