APSU Sports Information
Manhattan, KS – Third baseman Malcolm Tipler‘s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning broke a tie and Austin Peay State University’s baseball team held on for a 4-2 nonconference victory against Kansas State, Wednesday afternoon at Tointon Family Stadium.
With the game tied 2-2, Austin Peay (14-8) saw its first two batters of the ninth inning reach base, one courtesy a Kansas State defensive miscue.
After a sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, the Wildcats loaded the bases by intentionally walking center fielder Imani Willis.
The move did not pay off as Tipler his a fly ball deep enough to drive in the tie-breaking run.
Shortstop Garrett Kueber added an insurance run with a single to right, giving the Govs a 4-2 lead.
Reliever Brett Newberg returned to the mound in the bottom of the ninth and overcame a two-out Governors miscue to secure the win and his season’s second save. Tyler Thompson (1-3), who relieved Newberg in the eighth and retired the only batter he faced, picked up his season’s first win.
Austin Peay built an early 2-0 lead with runs in both the first and third innings. First baseman Parker Phillips drove in the game’s first run with the Govs third straight single in the first. Austin Peay scored again in the third on right fielder Kyle Wilson‘s single but was left wanting after loading the bases with no outs and not scoring additional runs.
Kansas State (12-9) could not solve the Governors pitching until the fifth inning. Right fielder Hanz Harker doubled to open the inning and left fielder Will Brennan and first baseman Jordan Maxson each singled to drive in a run, tying the game. However, the Wildcats would not get another base runner until the ninth inning, the Govs pitching staff retiring 12 straight batters.
Tipler ended the day 3-for-3 with a double and the game-winning RBI on the sacrifice fly. Kueber added a 2-for-5 outing that included the insurance run. Eight of the Govs starting nine posted a hit in the win.
KSU reliever Jared Marolf (1-2) suffered the loss after allowing two unearned runs on two hits and a walk in the ninth inning. The Wildcats were held to five hits in the contest.
Who Governed: Malcolm Tipler
Tipler notched his season’s first three-hit performance in the win. He reached base in each of his first four plate appearances, including singling and scoring in the first inning. Tipler also had a double in the fifth inning and a walk in the seventh before his game-winning sacrifice fly.
Govs Notably
Still Streaking
The Govs middle infield duo of Kueber and Giovannelli each extended their respective reached base safely streaks in Tuesday’s win. Giovannelli extended his streak to 28 games with a third-inning single that ran his hit streak to eight games – the best by a Govs hitter this season. Kueber had singles in both the first and ninth innings and has reached base in all 22 games this season.
Austin Peay’s offense notched 12 hits in the win against Kansas State. It was the third consecutive game they have notched 10-plus hits, equaling their longest such streak of the season. The Governors are hitting .359 over their last five games – posting a 4-1 record – and have bumped their season average 28 points to .283 –its highest mark since February 25th.
Mysterious Midwekk Woes: Solved
Austin Peay won its first midweek game of 2018 after failing to win in its first six games played on a Tuesday or Wednesday. It also was the Govs third true road win of the season, joining a pair of wins at Jacksonville State.
Up Next for APSU Baseball
It’s back to the Ohio Valley Conference fray as the Governors continue their five-game road trip. Austin Peay travels to Cookeville, Tennessee to face Tennessee Tech in an early meeting between teams tied atop the league standings. The three-game series is scheduled to open with a 6:00pm, Friday contest at Bush Stadium.
