CULUMOVIC GOES DEEP FOR THIRD STRAIGHT GAME BUT UT MARTIN BASEBALL FALLS VICTIM TO LATE LITTLE ROCK RALLY

Thursday, April 6

Little Rock, Ark.

6 p.m.

UT Martin

9-22, 0

Little Rock

15-11, 0

UT Martin

Little Rock

CULUMOVIC GOES DEEP FOR THIRD STRAIGHT GAME BUT UT MARTIN BASEBALL FALLS VICTIM TO LATE LITTLE ROCK RALLY

4/6/2023 10:37:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score PDF Boxscore

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team was three outs away from securing a victory in tonight's series opener at Little Rock but the host Trojans pushed across two runs in the bottom of the ninth to steal a 5-4 win.

The Skyhawks (9-22, 4-3 Ohio Valley Conference) took a dramatic 4-3 lead in the top of the ninth as Zac Rice crushed a leadoff homer to tie the game before an Andrew Fernandez go-ahead RBI single. However, UT Martin ran into some tough luck in the bottom half of the inning and dropped its third walk-off decision in the last 10 days.

Jack Culumovic stayed hot for the Skyhawks today as the redshirt senior designated hitter homered for the third consecutive game as part of a three-hit performance. Fernandez added a pair of hits and two RBI's to guide UT Martin offensively.

Two Skyhawk pitchers saw action on the mound as the duo of Seth Petry and Tristan Walton (1-4) combined to strikeout 10 Trojans against just one walk. Petry whiffed five batters over 5.1 innings of work but received a no-decision while Walton punched out five batters in three frames out of the bullpen.

Facing OVC ERA leader Jackson Wells (1.23 ERA coming into the game), the UT Martin offense struck first as Culumovic pulverized his fourth home run of the season in the bottom of the second – a solo shot to give the Skyhawks a 1-0 advantage.

Petry was in an early rhythm, pitching around a one-out triple in the first to hold Little Rock scoreless. He then stranded the bases loaded in the top of the second with a popup and inning-ending called strikeout. The senior right-hander then retired the side in order in the bottom of the third, needing just six pitches to do so.

Following yet another scoreless frame from Petry in the fourth, UT Martin tacked on another run in its next at-bat. Cameron Brady singled to open the top of the fifth and advanced 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt by Rice. Fernandez then lined an RBI single up the middle to extend the Skyhawk advantage out to 2-0.

The Trojans (15-11, 4-3 OVC) scored on a two-out double in the bottom of the fifth but Petry stopped the damage there and kept the lead in UT Martin's favor. Little Rock scored twice in the sixth to take its first lead of the game.

The Skyhawks placed baserunners in scoring position in the seventh and eighth but could not manufacture a run. Meanwhile, Walton did not allow a hit during the seventh and eighth innings, piling up three strikeouts during that span. The junior lefty retired the side in order in the bottom of the eighth to keep the score at 3-2 and give UT Martin a chance.

The momentum quickly shifted in the top of the ninth as Rice walloped a 2-1 pitch from Trojan closer Austin Stubber beyond the wall in left field to tie the game at 3-all. Caleb Hobson then showed extreme plate discipline with a seven-pitch walk before moving up to third base on a stolen base and passed ball. Fernandez guided an RBI single to center to put the Skyhawks back on top going into the bottom of the ninth.

Little Rock led the inning off with a home run down the left field line that went to a replay review before the call on the field was upheld. Moments later, the Trojans were able to score on a walk-off single.

Game 2 of the three-game set between these two sides is set for tomorrow at 4 p.m.