MARTIN, Tenn.– The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team held a lead through seven innings today but a late comeback from Eastern Illinois resulted in an 8-4 Skyhawk setback.
Zac Rice (2-for-4), Will Smith (2-for-5) and Jackson Cooke (2-for-3) recorded multi-hit games while Cole Smith homered for the second straight outing and drove in two runs. Mac Danford and Andrew Fernandez each had a base knock and an RBI on the afternoon.
Sophomore righty Jeb Bartle made his best start in a UT Martin uniform today, going a career-high eight innings with just one earned run allowed. He kept Eastern Illinois (6-18, 1-5 Ohio Valley Conference) off the scoreboard until an unearned run crossed the plate in the sixth. Following a scoreless seventh, the Panthers scored three times in the eighth – including a pair of unearned runs on an error with two outs, resulting in a tough-luck loss for Bartle (1-2).
The Skyhawks (11-17, 3-3 OVC) got on the Panthers early, coming away with two runs in the bottom of the first. Rice, Fernandez and Will Smith hit three straight singles which were followed by RBI groundouts from Danford and Cole Smith to propel UT Martin on top early.
A double play in the second helped end an Eastern Illinois threat before Bartle retired the side in order on just 10 pitches in the third. A no-doubt solo shot from Cole Smith down the right field line extended the Skyhawks’ lead to 3-0 in the bottom half as he ripped his fifth homer of the spring.
Bartle continued to mow through the Panther batting order, inducing another inning-ending double play to wrap up the fourth. The Cullman, Ala. native kept the shutout intact through the fifth before the aforementioned unearned run crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly in the sixth.
After Bartle recorded a trio of groundouts to the shortstop in another shutout inning in the seventh, he began the eighth with two quick outs via a 6-4-3 double play. However, Eastern Illinois was able to take its first lead of the game on the two-run, two-out error.
The Panthers added four runs in the top of the ninth before Davis Benton recorded the third and final out, needing only five pitches to retire the only batter he faced.
UT Martin battled in the ninth as Rice led off the frame with a walk before advancing to third on a Will Smith single. Rice soon came in to score on a Fernandez sacrifice fly but that would be the only run that the Skyhawks could manufacture in the final inning.
UT Martin will travel to Southeastern Conference member Missouri for a pair of midweek contests on April 2-3. Both games will be streamed on SEC Network+.
