Arkansas State baseball (13-12, 1-4 SBC) made a last-minute comeback bid, but Marshall (8-14, 2-3 SBC) was able to survive by a score of 9-6 on Saturday afternoon at Jack Cook Field.
Collin Maloney (1-1) made the start for A-State, surrendering three earned runs on one hit and three walks over 1.1 innings pitched. Brandon Hager led the way at the plate with three hits in five at-bats along with an RBI.
The Red Wolves recorded their first run on a throwing error at third base, allowing Blake Burris to cross the plate uncontested. The Thundering Herd tied it up at 1-1 in the bottom of the first with a sacrifice fly from Elijah Vogelsong.
Marshall put two more runners on base in the second before Kebler Peralta batted them in with a double down the left-field line to make the score 3-1.
After three consecutive scoreless frames, AJ Havrilla broke the silence after landing an RBI-single in centerfield. The Red Wolves prevented the last runner from scoring but trailed 4-1 going into the fifth.
Vogelsong struck again in the next inning with an RBI-triple down the right-field line before scoring on a single from Cam Harthan. A-State loaded the bases with one out in the sixth, but no runners would score as the Scarlet and Black trailed 6-1.
Marshall brought in another pair of runs with a double from Owen Ayers and a single from Gio Ferraro. The Thundering Herd reached 10 hits with the pair of knocks and held a seven run lead going into the seventh.
A failed pickoff attempt at second base allowed Tre Hondras to cross the plate uncontested. It was Marshall’s fourth consecutive inning with a run scored as they took a 9-2 advantage into the final stretch.
The Red Wolves loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth before Allen Grier batted in Burris with a single. Hager brought in Jayden Hill on another knock through the left side before two more runs scored on a throwing error at third base.
With the tying run at the plate and two outs, the Thundering Herd would get the final strikeout to seal defeat. Bryce Blevins (1-0) earned the win for Marshall while Maloney took the loss.
NEXT UP
Arkansas State will close the series against Marshall on Sunday, March 24. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. (CT) on ESPN+
