By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech baseball team dropped its midweek match-up with in-state rival Middle Tennessee Tuesday evening, as the Blue Raiders (20-21) outscored the Golden Eagles (30-13) at Bush Stadium, 18-7.
Middle Tennessee snagged a three-run lead right from the start, taking a 3-0 lead after the top of the first. Tech answered right back, using back-to-back RBI singles from junior first baseman Chase Chambers and senior catcher Chris Brown to cut the deficit to one.
In the bottom of the third, the Golden Eagles took their first lead of the game. After a one-out single through the right side by junior designated hitter Ryan Flick, Brown crushed his ninth home run of the season to right field, giving Tech a 4-3 advantage.
The Blue Raiders took back control in the fourth, tying the game on an RBI double before a three-run long ball provided the visitors the lead for good.
After Middle Tennessee upped its lead to 8-4 in the fifth, Tech cut the deficit in half. Sophomore right fielder Kevin Strohschein led off the bottom of the frame with a triple to center field, setting up Flick for an RBI double down the right field line on a 1-2 offering. Chambers followed with an RBI single to left center field, making it an 8-6 contest in favor of the visitors.
The Middle Tennessee offense never let up, however, scoring 10 more runs over the final four innings as compared to Tech's single run in the bottom of the eighth. The run came off the bat of true freshman Anthony Carrera, who hammered his first career collegiate home run to right field to lead off the eighth.
The Golden Eagles will head back out on the road to return to Ohio Valley Conference play Friday evening, kicking off a three-game series at Southeast Missouri in a 6 p.m. CT tilt in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Photo by Tony Marable