LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky bullpen retired 20 consecutive batters and Brian Spear hit his first home run of the season, as the No. 21 Kentucky baseball team improved to 9-0 on the season, defeating the Xavier Musketeers 6-2, on a lovely Wednesday evening at Cliff Hagan Stadium.
Kentucky’s unblemished start marks the second-best start in the 103-year history of the Kentucky baseball program, as the 2000 squad set the school mark with a 15-0 beginning to its season. The 1987 squad started its season 8-0.
Spear and senior Mike Brown contributed two hits apiece and Sawyer Carroll drove in two, as UK rolled to 11 total hits.
UK got superb pitching from its staff, as the Wildcats recorded 20 consecutive outs without allowing a Xavier baserunner, and freshman Tyler Henry was merely one-strike away from completing the game with two-outs in the ninth, before allowing a base runner that eventually scored.
Kentucky starter Clint Tilford worked two innings before southpaw Tommy Warner came on in relief. The junior entered in a bases loaded jam and promptly worked out of the inning without allowing a hit, sitting down three consecutive batters to end the frame. Warner hurled four hitless innings, sitting down 12 straight Xavier batters. Freshman James Paxton relieved Warner for his first collegiate action, sitting down the six batters he faced before giving way to Brock Baber. Baber got his first action of the season, hurling 1 1/3 innings before handing the rock over to Henry.
Warner (1-0) notched the win for UK and Musketeer hurler Charlie Leesman took the loss, his first of the season.
Xavier (1-7) scored the first run of the contest, plating one run in the top of the first. Jordan Wolf singled and stole second, later scoring on an RBI single from Neil Lindgren.
Kentucky (9-0) took control of the game with a five-run second inning, beginning when Spear rocketed his first home run as a Wildcat, a towering blast over right field. Ryan Wilkes doubled and the next batter, senior Billy Grace, drove in Wilkes with a double. Mike Brown promptly plated Grace with a hard-hit single past the glove of Musketeer first baseman Robbie Kelley. Carroll, drove in his team-leading 12th and 13th RBI of the season with a double down the right-field line, his seventh two-bagger of the season, plating Anthony Ottrando and Mike Brown.
The Wildcats plated another run in the fifth, as Matt McKinney led off the inning with a single. Sean Coughlin singled and Spear reached on a walk, putting McKinney on third base with the bases loaded. Jason Kipnis, the National and Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week after a dominating performance in UK’s sweep of Furman to start the season, drove in McKinney with a sacrifice fly to make it 6-1 UK.
Xavier tacked on one more run with a two-out rally that started with the base hit from pinch hitter Andy Zellers. Zellers would come around to score on a Tyler Aholt RBI single.
Kentucky returns to action on Friday when it hosts Wisconsin Milwaukee in a three-game set. Game times are set for 4 p.m. EST on Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Fans can tune in to WXRA 1580-AM in Lexington or follow along with live stats and audio on Kentucky’s official website, UKathletics.com.
