RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – The No. 8 East Central University baseball team battled deep into the night Thursday in game one of the Great American Conference Championship Series, but No. 2 Arkansas Tech University used a walk-off rally in the ninth inning to claim a 6-5 victory in Russellville.
Despite the tough finish, the Tigers controlled much of the contest and continued to show the resilience that has fueled their historic postseason run. ECU held the lead from the fourth inning on and carried a two-run advantage into the final frame before the Wonder Boys rallied late to steal game one of the best-of-three series.
ECU will now look to immediately bounce back Friday evening in a must-win matchup to even the series and force a decisive third game. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. in Russellville.
ECU struck first in the opening inning when
Joey Allen lined an RBI single into shallow center field, allowing
Donovan Noble to score from first and give the Tigers an early lead. Arkansas Tech answered in the bottom half with a two-run single to move ahead 2-1, but ECU responded with a big fourth inning to swing momentum back in its favor.
The Tigers tied the game when
Logan Jeske ripped an RBI double to left center to score
Pryce Jackson. Moments later, ECU took advantage of a throwing error by the Wonder Boys pitcher, allowing Jeske to score and
Mason Shimkus to move into scoring position.
Tyler Akers then added a sacrifice fly to plate another run and extend the lead to 4-2.
Arkansas Tech trimmed the deficit to one in the bottom of the inning, but ECU answered again in the fifth as
Ryan Strickland launched a solo home run to left field to push the Tigers' lead back to 5-3.
The Tigers maintained control throughout the late innings before Arkansas Tech mounted its comeback in the ninth. The Wonder Boys opened the inning with an RBI ground-rule double before adding a game-tying RBI groundout. Later in the frame, Arkansas Tech delivered a walk-off single through the left side to secure the 6-5 victory.
Ryan Strickland led the way at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a solo home run.
Joey Allen opened the scoring in the first inning with an RBI single, while
Logan Jeske added an RBI double during ECU's pivotal fourth inning rally.
Pryce Jackson,
Max Tremblay, and
Cooper McCage each added hits for the Tigers, while
Donovan Noble reached base three times with three walks and scored a run at the top of the lineup.
On the mound,
Ryan Dembroski delivered another solid postseason start, tossing 6.1 innings while allowing three runs on nine hits to keep ECU in front through much of the contest.
Andrew Black followed with 1.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen, adding a strikeout and helping carry the Tigers' lead into the ninth inning. In the final frame,
Evan Groh and
Blake Seefeldt worked in relief as Arkansas Tech pieced together a late rally, ultimately scoring three runs to secure the walk-off victory.
