ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — After two close games vs. the No. 4 team in the country earlier this spring, Griffon Baseball suffered a 15-1 defeat against the Mules this Tuesday at the Spring Sports Complex.
Central Missouri (30-4, 23-1 MIAA) controlled the game early, scoring three runs off of pitcher
Easton Unruh (0-1) in the first inning. Unruh attempted to pick off reigning MIAA Hitter of the Week Brennen van Breusegen at first after a walk but airmailed the throw into the fence. Moments later, van Breusegen scored on wild pitch to set the tone for contest.
Unruh was eventually pulled in the first for
Blake Van Hercke, who gave up two runs on an RBI fielder's choice by Carter Young, putting Missouri Western (8-26, 5-18 MIAA) in the hole early.
Senn Grayson (1-0) let MWSU trim the lead in the bottom half of the frame when
Brenden Andersen singled home
Alex Crouch — who was at third thanks to a two-out triple. However, the Mules were airtight on the mound and on defense, allowing just one more hit for the rest of the day.
Up 4-1 in the fourth, UCM scorched the board for six more runs, following it up with a five-run frame in the fifth. The Mules only allowed five baserunners and committed zero errors. Meanwhile, the Griffons committed two errors and gave up 14 hits.
NOTABLES
UP NEXT
The Griffons take to the road for a three-game set with Fort Hays State (3-32, 2-21 MIAA) starting this Thursday at 6 p.m. in Hays, Kansas. The Tigers have taken a loss in 13-straight games and are 2-16 at home. They were swept by Northeastern State in three games this past weekend.
