CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The Jacksonville State baseball team dropped a 6-5, 14-inning marathon on Sunday to Austin Peay to close out the opening weekend of Ohio Valley Conference play.
The win by the Govs (9-6,3-0 OVC) completed the weekend sweep of the Gamecocks (7-7, 0-3 OVC), which is the first time that has happened in the series history between the two clubs. APSU won Friday's contest 8-1 and claimed the series with a 4-0 win on Saturday.
APSU's Alex Robles, who was stellar on Saturday on the mound and with a pair of hits, was the thorn in Jax State's side again on Sunday as he belted the game-winning home run to start the 14
th inning. The 14-inning affair was the first extra inning contest for JSU since a 13-inning contest against Tennessee Tech during the 2015 season. It also matched JSU's longest OVC contest since a 15-inning marathon against Murray State during the 2013 campaign.
The Gamecocks looked to have things under control with a 5-0 lead through the first six innings. The Govs scored single runs in the seventh and eighth and equalized in the ninth with three runs. JSU took a 1-0 lead in the third after
Clayton Daniel's first of two run-scoring doubles in the contest. The Guntersville, Alabama native laced a two-out double just past the third base bag, scoring
Dalton Etheridge, who reached base on a single. Etheridge, who earned the start in centerfield, was one of three Gamecocks with multiple hits. The Jonesboro, Georgia native started the three-run sixth with a one-out double. Following a walk by
Nolan Greckel, who had two hits in the late innings, Daniel placed another double down the left field line, scoring two runs and extended the lead to 3-0.
JSU added its final run of the contest with a solo home run by sophomore
Nic Gaddis in the sixth.
JSU starter
Joe McGuire set the tone for the Gamecocks on the mound, silencing the Govs for three-plus innings and allowing just three hits. Freshman
Cody Dodd pitched 1.1 innings and
Nate Sylvester tossed 1.2 innings and was touched for the first APSU run. Kyle Wilson had an RBI single, scoring Parker Phillips from third after a leadoff triple.
The Govs added a run in the eighth on Dre Gleason's RBI single with the bases loaded. Junior
Justin Hoyt worked out of a bases-loaded jam to limit the damage in the eighth and preserve the Gamecocks' lead.
APSU led off the bottom of the ninth with a pinch hit solo home run by Brett Newberg to ignite the three-run frame to extend the game. Gleason's double scored the game-tying runs with two outs in the inning before Hoyt stranded him at second with a strikeout.
Both clubs did not have many scoring opportunities in extra innings as both relief guys were solid. JSU's
Grant Chandler went a career-long 4.2 innings and posted a pair of strikeouts. He was saddled with the loss after Robles' walk off. For the second time on the weekend, JSU pitchers recorded double figure strikeout totals with 14 punch outs.
APSU's bullpen allowed just two runs on seven hits in the final 10 innings after JSU touched starter Michael Costanzo for three runs on five hits.
The Gamecocks will have a busy week with five games throughout the week, beginning with a pair of in-state duels. JSU will welcome the Bulldogs of Samford to Choccolocco Park on Tuesday, March 14. Forst pitch is set for 3 p.m. The Gamecocks will visit Auburn on Wednesday in the makeup contest that was originally scheduled for February 21. Jax State returns to OVC play next weekend, hosting Eastern Illinois.
