Featured photo by Khori Williams
Story by Conner Smith
San Antonio, TX- Middle Tennessee State baseball took a huge hit Sunday afternoon when it were swept by UTSA 5-4 in the final game of the series, putting itself five games back of first place in C-USA.
UTSA was quick to strike as it went up 5-0 after three innings. The Blue Raiders couldn’t muster any runs but freshman Ollie Akens kept the game under control.
Akens was called upon in the fourth and didn’t disappoint as he threw the rest of the game giving up zero runs, one walk, and striking out two Roadrunner batters.
MTSU finally got on the board in the eighth when it posted a two-run inning capped off by a Jackson Galloway RBI single. The Blue Raiders entered the ninth inning down by three but put up a good fight.
Eston Snider tried his best to bring his team back with a two-run double in the ninth to put them within a single run. The Blue Raiders comeback attempt was too late as they stranded Snider at second to drop the third game of the series 5-4.
“We got behind, but Akens did a good job of holding UTSA and giving us a chance at the end,” MTSU head coach Jerry Meyers said.” We got the two runs in the eighth, and then we had an opportunity and made it very interesting. It just wasn’t good enough. We gave them some opportunities early and they capitalized. Even though we played like what I thought was very well after that, it was too little too late.”
MTSU will play a home-and-home two-game series this week against Lipscomb. First pitch fr pitch from Reese Smith Jr. Field is set for 6:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday, with the Raiders playing at Lipscomb on Wednesday night.
Conner Smith is a sports reporter for MTSU Sidelines. If you have information for a story, you can contact him at cws4t@mtmail.mtsu.edu.
