Golden Eagles Rally Falls Short in 8-6 Loss to Western Illinois
Tennessee Tech mounted a late charge Friday afternoon, but Western Illinois held on for an 8-6 victory in the series opener at Bush Stadium.
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 11 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 3 |
By Jeff Bowe, TTU Athletics Media Relations
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee Tech mounted a late charge Friday afternoon, but Western Illinois held on for an 8-6 victory in the series opener at Bush Stadium.
The Golden Eagles (14-29, 3-13 OVC) showed resilience throughout, highlighted by a pair of home runs and a four-run seventh inning that trimmed a seven-run deficit to just two.
After Western Illinois struck first with a run in the second, Tech answered in the third inning when Landon Smelser launched a two-run homer to right field, giving the Golden Eagles a 2-1 advantage.
The Leathernecks responded with a decisive stretch, plating four runs in the fifth inning—three of which were unearned—and adding three more in the seventh to build an 8-2 lead.
Tennessee Tech refused to go quietly. In the bottom of the seventh, the Golden Eagles strung together a rally as Connor Crowson and Tyler Bennett reached base ahead of Smelser, who worked a walk to load the bases. Jorsixt Jimenez then delivered the biggest swing of the game for Tech, blasting a grand slam to right field to cut the deficit to 8-6.
Jimenez finished with four RBI on the day, while Smelser paced the offense with two hits, two runs scored, and two RBI.
Despite the momentum shift, Western Illinois turned to its bullpen late, as Eric Rawlings tossed 2.1 scoreless innings with three strikeouts to secure the save and halt the Golden Eagles' comeback bid.
Carter Casabella (1-5) was charged with the loss for Tech, allowing seven runs (four earned) over 6.1 innings, while Lawson Stricklin and Drew Mattox combined to finish the game on the mound.
The Golden Eagles were limited to eight hits but capitalized on timely power, with both Smelser and Jimenez going deep in the contest.
NEXT UP
The second game of the series between the Golden Eagles and the Leathernecks is scheduled for a 2 p.m. first pitch on Saturday.
