In the Middle: Fifth and Sixth Innings Doom Kentucky
Bowling Green, Ky. – Kentucky took a three-run lead heading into the bottom of the fifth inning but its usually reliable defense made two errors and failed to make another important play as Western Kentucky took advantage and scored six unanswered runs in a 6-4 victory at Nick Denes Field.
The game was delayed in the seventh inning by more than two hours due to inclement weather and although the Cats (25-17) made one final push in the ninth inning it wasn’t enough to offset the earlier lack of sharpness. On the other side, Western Kentucky’s 35th victory of the season also doubles as its signature win on its NCAA resume.
UK wasted no time trying to impose its will, as Tyler Bell singled on the first pitch of the game and came around to score. Later, Cole Hage doubled and scored on Ryan Schwartz’s single and James McCoy hammered his first home run of the season.
Meanwhile, starter Ethan Walker danced around potential trouble on several occasions early in the game but came undone in the Hilltoppers’ four-run fifth inning. Another failure to make a defensive play led to two more runs in the sixth inning.
NOTES
- Kentucky is 25-17 (10-11 SEC) on the season.
- UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his ninth season at the helm and now owns a 287-183 career record.
- Mingione is the second-winningest coach in school history.
- UK is 15-6 this season and 166-50 in total against non-conference opponents in Mingione’s tenure.
- UK is 66-67 in the month of April under Coach Mingione.
- Mingione now is 9-2 vs. WKU.
- INF Tyler Bell now has reached base safely in 41 of 42 career games.
- He ties Jeff Abbott (1991) for the fifth-most runs scored (39) by a freshman in school history.
- He finished 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI.
- IF Hudson Brown went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles.
- RHP/UTL James McCoy hit his first home run of the season.
- C/OF Ryan Schwartz has reached safely in the first nine games of his career since joining the starting lineup.
- OF Cole Hage went 2-for-4 with a run and a double.
- He has four consecutive multi-hit games.
ON DECK
The Cats travel to Mississippi State on Friday night. The game is at 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT. It will air on SECN+ and radio will be carried by the UK Sports Network.
