Cougars take a pair from Eutectics to open weekend DH

ALTON, IL – On an unseasonably warm mid-February day near St. Louis, the Eutectics dropped a pair to St. Xavier on Friday, 7-2 and then 8-0. Barrett Lohman got the start in the opener and was not as sharp as he was in his first outing of the season. John Simecek went 3-for-3 for the Cougars in the opener. Cougars pitchers combined to handcuff Eutectic hitters into just eight hits in the two games combined.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

ST. XAVIER 7, UHSP 2

• The Cougars got to UHSP starter Barrett Lohman for four runs in the second to take a 4-0 lead. That was after Lohman sat down St. Xavier in order in the first and had a pair of strikeouts.
• UHSP got two back in the bottom of the second. Jacob Grim opened the inning with a single and then stole second. Caden Buxton and Joe Celeste went back-to-back with run scoring doubles.
• SXU added a run in the fourth as Ben Meier singled to lead off the inning and scored on a Lohman wild pitch. They tacked on two more in the fifth when Parker Violett drove in a pair with a one-out single up the middle to make it a 7-2 game.
• Trent Markezich (1-0) went the distance for the Cougars picking up the win. He tossed a four-hitter allowing two runs, striking out four and needing just 77 pitches for the game. The last Eutectic to reach against Markezich was a leadoff hit in the fourth as he retired the last dozen Eutectics he saw.
• Lohman (1-1) went five frames allowing seven runs, six earned on eight hits. He walked two and fanned four.
• Trevor Corbett was fantastic at short for St. Xavier fielding eight ground balls and making eight putouts at first.
• Brayden Steves tossed a perfect final two innings in relief for UHSP.

ST. XAVIER 8, UHSP 0

• It was a rocky first inning for the UHSP defense as two innings allowed four unearned runs as St. Xavier took a 4-0 lead.
• Logan Stribling (0-1) took the loss as he pitched into the second without retiring a batter in the second. He gave up four runs (all unearned) walking two and striking out one.
• Jacob Grim made a tremendous play to end the second and keep St. Xavier off the board. With runners at second and third and one out, Grim made a long run to catch a ball in foul territory near the side fence in right field. The runner from third, Ryan O'Farrell, tried to score and Grim threw a one-hop strike to the plate as Ethan Harrell applied the tag to cut down O'Farrell and end the frame.
• A single and back-to-back hit batters is how an ominous fourth began for Peyton Schaefer. He came on in the second to relieve Stribling. Trevor Corbett singled through the right side to score two and then Aaron Orzech walked to reload the bases. That chased Schaefer as Jackson Wininger came on with the bases loaded and one out. Jacob Grim made a carbon copy of his defensive effort in the second with another catch and throw to the plate to end the inning to keep it a 6-0 game.
• UHSP loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, but SXU starter Cole Martz got a strikeout and then Brandon Gibbs lined out to center on a diving catch by Orzech to end the inning and keep it a 6-0 game.
• Cole Martz (1-1) would go six three-hit frames as he picked up the win. He allowed a pair of walks and struck out two.
• Ryan O'Farrell had the lone multi-hit day for SXU in game two.

NEXT UP:

The Eutectics (2-4) and Cougars (5-5) will continue their weekend series on Sunday. That is a change from the original schedule but with rain in the forecast all day on Saturday, UHSP and SXU will wait until Sunday to finish the four-game set. First pitch is set for 11:00am.