FHSU Sports Information
Fort Hays State scored 11 runs and held leads twice, but it was not enough against a red-hot Drury University squad on Wednesday night in Springfield, Mo. The Panthers ran their win streak to 16 games with a 22-11 run-rule win over FHSU in eight innings. The Tigers moved to 12-21 overall on the season, while Drury improved to 22-7.
The Tigers were just the second team to reach double digits in runs on Drury’s home field this year, tying the most Drury has allowed at home this year. All the offense came early for the Tigers, scoring all 11 runs within the first four innings.
FHSU had an early 2-0 lead on a Horarace Johnson two-run home run in the first. After Drury scored one in the opening frame, Nick Hammeke had a RBI groundout in the second to make it 3-1.
Tiger starter Ty Thomas ran into trouble in the second, giving up three consecutive hits to start the inning and Drury scored four, taking a 5-3 lead to the third inning. The Tigers answered though with two runs in the third to tie the game 5-5, getting back-to-back doubles from Gus Strunk and Clayton Garland to produce the first run an a double by Cooper Langley later in the inning to score Garland.
Thomas got the first Drury batter out in the third, but then a walk, two-run homer, hit batter, and walk ended his day. Drew Martineau entered in relief and the Panthers scored five before the inning was over. Thomas was charged with nine runs (eight earned) on seven hits and two walks with one strikeout. Drury led 10-5 heading to the fourth.
The Tigers answered the big inning of the Panthers with six runs in the fourth to take the lead back at 11-10. Three straight singles from Hammeke, Jordan Miller, and Strunk triggered the rally. Strunk picked up an RBI on his hit, Garland followed with a sacrifice fly RBI, and then Johnson singled home a run. Kevin Czarnecki had a single and Langley followed with a two-RBI double to tie the game. Casey Sedbrook pushed the Tigers into the lead with a RBI single.
Martineau held the Drury offense scoreless in the fourth, the first half inning in the game without a run scored, but he then ran into trouble in the fifth allowing a home run and two singles to open the inning. Nathan Zimmerman came on in relief and Drury went on to put up five runs in the inning, taking the lead back at 15-11. Martineau finished with 1.2 innings of relief, allowing four runs on six hits and a walk. He would eventually be tagged with the loss and he is now 0-1 on the season.
Brian Quasebarth was the answer Drury needed out of the bullpen to hold the Tiger offense silent. Stopping the rally in the fourth, he went on to throw 2.2 innings and hold the Tigers to just one hit and one walk, picking up his first win and decision of the season. The Tigers faced three more relievers and only managed two hits over their combined two innings of work.
Drury went on to score three in the seventh, all charged to Zimmerman who finished with five runs allowed (four earned) on six hits and two walks. The Panthers walked off by run-rule in the eighth with a grand slam off Tiger reliever Nathan Briar, who threw 1.1 innings allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits and one walk with two strikeouts.
The Tigers take a day off before starting the four-game conference series at Southwest Baptist on Friday with a doubleheader beginning at 1 pm in Bolivar, Mo.