Aces baseball sweeps Tulane in Saturday’s doubleheader

NEW ORLEANS (WFIE) – Doing something they haven’t done since 2006, the University of Evansville baseball team won a double sweep of No. 18 Tulane, 5-3, 5-1 , Saturday in New Orleans, Louisiana. The last time Evansville had back-to-back wins over top-25 opponents was on April 8, 2006 when the Aces beat No. 21 Wichita State, 2-1, 7-5. It all started on the mound with great performances from Shane Gray and Nick Smith,” said Aces head baseball coach Wes Carroll. “The bullpen held the lead as we were able to tackle late runs. The offense had a great plan and delivered it with runners in scoring position. Great day to be an ace. That day, starters Shane Gray and Nick Smith combined to allow just four combined runs and throw 16 strikeouts in their wins. Offensively, the Aces had 20 hits, scoring 10 runs, while defensively, Evansville played clean ball with no errors in all 18 innings of the double play. Game 1: Evansville 5, Tulane 3 Evansville fans have was treated to a plethora of impressive performances from Shane Gray in his four seasons as an ace, but Saturday against the green wave might have been one of Gray’s best in white and purple. Gray dominated for seven innings of work, allowing just six hits and nine batters on strike. Until the eighth inning, Gray did not allow a runner past first base. A patient, calculated approach to home plate paid off for Evansville as runs came in spurts and at the opportune times for the As. Evansville grabbed his first two runs of the day in the third as doubles from Mark Shallenberger and Tanner Craig each drove in a run. Just two innings later, a similar story unfolded with a double from Simon Scherry and a hit from Brent Widder again delivering single runs apiece for the Aces to double Evansville’s lead to 4-0. After earning another run in the eighth on an RBI single from Brendan Hord, Gray came back for his eighth inning of work and got in trouble for the first time. Tulane scored five runs as Nate Hardman and Jakob Meyer came in and out of the inning. In the ninth with Meyer on the mound, the Aces locked in the win as the closest sat down the wave in order, ending the game with a strikeout looking to secure the 5-3 win. Game 2: Evansville 5, Tulane 1 Game 2’s story began much like Game 1 with Evansville on the momentum gained by its starter on the mound and his stellar defensive effort. Sophomore Nick Smith was dominant on the mound, pitching the first 6.1 innings, allowing six hits and just one run, while hitting seven. Much of the Aces offense in Game 2 came from a good first inning at bats. Evansville took a run early in the second inning as Danny Borgstrom pulled out, scoring Chase Hug. In the fifth, Evansville added another single run on an RBI sacrifice fly from Craig. Continuing the trend, the Aces grabbed another run on an RBI stolen sack from Scherry in the seventh as UE held a 3-0 lead. Tulane scratched their first, and what would be their only, run of the game in the seventh. As the game entered the ninth, Evansville received a crucial boost it needed with Rumsey scoring on wild pitch on a Craig strikeout that extended the inning and Widder ripping a double down the line, scoring Scherry to add insurance and pump the Aces leads to 5-1. In the bottom of the ninth, Drew Dominik matched teammate Jakob Meyer’s efforts, pulling out a pair in the last frame and ending the game with one out at bat in the 5-1 win. his road streak at No. 18 Tulane with a final game Sunday at 1 p.m. in New Orleans, La.Copyright 2022 WFIE. All rights reserved.