HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The No. 8 East Central University baseball team continued its impressive postseason run Friday, delivering a dominant 14-4 run-rule victory over No. 5 Southern Arkansas in the winner's bracket at Majestic Park. With the win, the Tigers advance to Saturday in prime position, needing just one more victory to punch their ticket to the GAC Championship series.
The win marks ECU's first-ever back-to-back victories in the GAC Championship Tournament, continuing a historic run for the program.
With momentum firmly on their side, the Tigers will face the winner of Southern Arkansas and Southeastern Oklahoma State on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Majestic Park.
ECU wasted no time responding after Southern Arkansas struck first with a solo home run in the second inning. The Tigers erupted in the fourth, putting together a massive offensive frame that completely shifted the momentum.
Logan Jeske got things started with an RBI bunt single, while
Mason Shimkus and
Cooper McCage followed with run-scoring hits. A sacrifice fly from
Donovan Noble extended the lead before
Ryan Strickland delivered the biggest blow of the inning, a three-run home run to right field, to cap off an eight-run surge and give ECU an 8-1 advantage.
Southern Arkansas attempted to chip away with another solo home run in the fourth inning, but ECU continued to apply pressure offensively. In the sixth inning,
Joey Allen drove in a run and sparked another scoring sequence, while
Pryce Jackson added an RBI single to push the lead to 11-2.
After SAU tacked on a run in the sixth inning, the Tigers kept rolling into the seventh, as Noble and Strickland each added RBIs before ECU capitalized on a defensive miscue to extend the lead to 14-3. The Muleriders plated one more run in the bottom half, but the damage had already been done as ECU secured the run-rule victory.
Ryan Strickland powered the Tigers' offense with a huge performance, going 3-for-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored, highlighted by a three-run home run.
Donovan Noble added another strong day at the plate, finishing 2-for-3 with two RBIs, two runs scored, and a walk, while
Mason Shimkus and
Tyler Akers each recorded two hits.
Pryce Jackson contributed two hits and an RBI, and
Joey Allen,
Logan Jeske, and
Cooper McCage each drove in a run as ECU totaled 15 hits in the dominant win.
Caleb Peek delivered a complete game performance on the mound, going 7.0 innings while allowing four runs on five hits and striking out five to earn the win.
