COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- After falling behind 5-0 in the fifth
inning, the Tennessee Tech baseball team put together a furious
comeback, led by sophomore A.J. Kirby-Jones’ second grand
slam of the season, as the Golden Eagles downed in-state rival
Belmont 8-6 in Bush Stadium.
“I was just trying to go up there and do what I do,”
Kirby-Jones said.
Kirby-Jones went 4-for-4 from the plate, with six RBIs. The grand
slam was his fifth home run of the season.
Senior Ryan Dennick pitched the final three innings, striking out
the first four batters he faced, as Tech improved to 9-3 on the
season.
“A.J. had a heck of a day,” head coach Matt Bragga
said. “And (Ryan) was dynamite. He had a great outing today,
and he’s really throwing the slop out of the ball.”
Dennick earned the save for the Golden Eagles, allowing just one
hit in three innings, while striking out five and walking one.
Freshman Chad Hayes worked four innings of relief, and struck out
four Belmont batters. Freshman Jerred Griggs pitched two-thirds of
an inning, and got the win (1-0).
Belmont (7-7) scored one run in the first and second innings, and
added three in the fifth to go up 5-0 before Tech put together its
comeback. In the bottom of the fifth Cory Wright walked with the
bases loaded, putting Tech on the scoreboard, and setting the table
for Kirby-Jones to clear the bases and tie the score at five.
The Golden Eagles scored their eight runs on just five hits. In
addition to Kirby-Jones’ four, junior Tate McMillan had one
hit and two RBIs.
The tie didn’t last long, as Belmont went up 6-5 in the top
of the sixth inning when Matt Zeblo led off the inning with a solo
homer.
The Golden Eagles would take the lead for good in the bottom half
of the inning, when Heath Cheverton walked to lead off the inning,
then stole second and advanced to third on an error. Later in the
inning, McMillan singled, scoring Cheverton. Then with two outs,
Kirby-Jones singled, scoring McMillan and Alex Henry, putting Tech
up 8-6.
“We had to scrap back and fight to win,” Kirby-Jones
said. “It’s always tough when you’re playing from
behind.”
The last Golden Eagles to hit two grand slams in one season was
Matt Ballard, when he had slams against Tennessee and Cumberland
College in 1989. Kirby-Jones hit his first grand slam in the second
game of an opening-day double header against Saint Peters College
on Feb. 20. His six RBIs were one short of a Tech single-game
record.
The Golden Eagles will travel to Nashville for a return game with
the Bruins on March 24 at Greer Stadium.
Later on in the week Tech will welcome Valparaiso to Cookeville for
a four-game series, with double headers on March 13 and 14.