April 8, 2009
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue plated two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning and had the bases loaded when the final out was recorded in a tough 12-11 defeat to visiting Illinois State at Lambert Field on Wednesday. The loss dropped the Boilermakers to 13-14 for the season, while the Redbirds improved to 14-9.
Trailing 12-9 heading into the bottom of the final frame, Purdue pulled within one on a one-out solo home run by Brandon Haveman and a two-out bases loaded walk to pinch hitter John Cummins, but Alex Jaffee popped the first pitch he saw up to first baseman Evan Kohli following Cummins to end the threat and leave the Boilers one run shy of tying the game.
After pulling even at 9-9 on an RBI single by Ryan Court in the seventh, the Redbirds took the lead with two runs in the eighth on a run-scoring triple by Mike Stalowy and a single by Kohli. ISU then tacked on what would prove to be the game-winning run on a one-out Gabe DeMarco single to center in the ninth.
ISU's Matt Werderitch (1-0) picked up his first win of the season after tossing two shutout innings in the seventh and eighth, and Jim Sajewich worked out of the jam in the ninth to nail down his third save of the year.
Purdue's Kevin Cahill (2-2) was charged with the loss, allowing two runs on two hits in 2/3 of inning.
Assisted by two walks and a hit batter by ISU starter Ben Hays, the Boilermakers jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the first, but saw the Redbirds climb back into the contest on a solo home run by Kohli in the second and a three-run blast by Stalowy in the third to make it 5-4 Purdue.
Illinois State plated four runs in the fourth inning on four hits and a costly throwing error by third baseman Eric Charles to take an 8-5 lead, but the Boilers battled back with two in the fourth and one each in the fifth and sixth to pull into the ill-fated 9-8 advantage through six.
Offensively, Illinois State rapped out 12 hits to Purdue's 11 in the game.
Individually, ISU's Stalowy finished 2 for 4 with his second homer of the season and a game-high four RBIs, and Kohli chipped in with his second blast of the year and three runs driven to finish 3 for 3.
For Purdue, Charles extended his hitting streak to nine straight games after going 3 for 6 with a triple and a game-high four runs scored. Jaffee was the only other Purdue hitter with multiple hits in the contest, finishing 2 for 4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. Haveman's ninth-inning solo home run extended his hitting streak to a season-high 10 straight games.
Purdue will next be action this weekend when it heads to Penn State for the opener of a three-game Big Ten series against the Nittany Lions. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. EDT.