Cleveland State baseball went 1-3 versus Motlow State in a 3 game weekend series. The Cougars took game one, 11-9 but lost games two and three 10-3 and 13-10 respectively.
Game one resulted in a Cougar victory with a final score of 11-9. Cleveland State score 10 of their 11 runs in the first two innings while holding off Motlow State long enough to secure the victory. Hooper Mills was on the mound in game one, pitching 6 innings allowing 4 earned runs, 2 walks while issuing 7 strikeouts. Mills got the win moving his record to 4-0. Greg Tye threw his third save of the season in the win. On the offensive side, Hunter Oliver and Cameron Payne each had a double while Hunter Oliver had 2 doubles. Joey Roberson, Cameron Payne and Brandon Mason each had 3 RBI's. Trey Vanderpool also finished the day with a stolen base.
Game two went to Motlow State in a 10-3 defeat of the Cougars. Collin Grove was the losing pitcher in this one, going 4.1 innings allowing 5 earned runs, 3 walks while striking out 4. The loss brings Grove's record to 1-1 on the season. The Cougars couldn't muster up much offense, finishing the game with 3 runs on 5 hits. Hunter Oliver had another double while Noah Hill, Brandon Mason and Cameron Hankins each had an RBI.
After game two head coach Mike Policastro commented, "We didn't make the defensive plays we needed and could not overcome the 8 run performance Motlow put up in the 5th inning. We will need to get better in all phases of the game for a chance to win this series."
The final game in the series again went to Motlow State, who defeated the Cougars 13-10. Ryan Lloyd was the starter for the Cougars in game three, but only lasted 3.1 innings, allowing 6 earned runs, 1 walk while throwing 3 strikeouts. Tyler Zak ultimately ended up with the loss, throwing 0.2 innings, allowing 2 earned runs. The offense was much better in this game as the Cougars were able to put up 10 runs on 10 hits but weren't able to pull off the win. Tucker Mendenhall finished with a double and 2 RBI's in the game while Joey Roberson tallied a home run and 4 RBI's. Trey Vanderpool finished with an RBI off of a sac fly.
This series puts the Cougars record at 14-7 (4-2) on the season. They'll look to get back on the winning side of things as they take on Clark State on Thursday, March 15th in a doubleheader at home, starting at 1:00 PM.