VU Baseball overcomes early deficit in road comeback win at Olney Central

OLNEY, Ill. – The Vincennes University baseball team hit the road Wednesday afternoon for a mid-week showdown with NJCAA Division I Olney Central College.

The Trailblazers fell behind early but battled back and overcame an early five run deficit to pick up the 16-11 victory over the Blue Knights.

Vincennes got the scoring going early with VU leadoff hitter sophomore Bradyn Douglas (Frankton, Ind.) starting the game with a single.

Douglas advanced around the bases on a sacrifice bunt and a groundout before scoring the first run of the game on an RBI double by freshman Carter Gricius (Scottsburg, Ind.).

Olney Central answered back in the bottom half of the inning with a pair of runs to take a 2-1 lead.

VU would regain the lead in the second with a big two-out rally started by a single by freshman Wyatt Burris (Farmland, Ind.) and an RBI double by sophomore Bryce Gross (Bridgeport, Ill.).

The inning continued with Bradyn Douglas reaching on an error before stealing second to put runners on second and third.

Freshman Jevan Andrews (Hobart, Ind.) gave the Blazers the lead back with a two-RBI single to put VU back ahead 4-2.

This lead would not stand however as Olney Central responded back with three runs in the second and four runs in the third to take a 9-4 lead over the Trailblazers.

The middle innings were much kinder to the Trailblazers though, as VU began their big comeback in the fourth with leadoff walks by sophomores Damon Kay (Spencer, Ind.) and Noble Johnson (Terre Haute, Ind.).

The Blazers would get their first run of the inning on an RBI double by Wyatt Burris, followed by a run scoring fielder's choice put in play by Bryce Gross to cut the deficit to three.

The inning continued after a two out walk by Jevan Andrews leading to a successful double steal with Gross scoring from third.

Andrews would come around to score later in the inning on an RBI single by sophomore Nate Montgomery (Lexington, Ind.) to put the Trailblazers back within one run at 9-8.

Olney Central would get a run back in the fifth to put their lead back at two but it would not stand as the Blazers came through with another big inning at the dish in the sixth.

Bradyn Douglas led off the inning with a single, followed by a two-run home run by Jevan Andrews, his first collegiate home run to even the score at 10-10.

Nate Montgomery walked and Carter Gricius was hit by pitch before the pair moved up 90 feet on a passed ball to give the Blazers two runners in scoring position.

Noble Johnson came through with a big two-out two RBI double later in the inning, scoring Montgomery and Gricius and putting the Blazers on top 12-10.

VU would add to their lead in the seventh with a leadoff solo home run by Bryce Gross, his third RBI of the game and third home run of the season.

Bradyn Douglas followed this with a single, later advancing on a fielding error and scoring on an RBI single by Nate Montgomery to give VU a 14-10 lead.

Olney Central would get a run back in the seventh but were unable to put together a big inning of their own.

Vincennes added a pair of insurance runs in the ninth after a leadoff double by Bryce Gross, his third hit of the game, followed by an RBI single by Bradyn Douglas, his fourth hit of the game.

Douglas advanced on a successful sacrifice bunt, stole third base and later scored on a wild pitch to score his fifth run of the afternoon and give the Blazers a 16-11 advantage heading to the bottom of the ninth.

The VU pitchers were able to hold the Blue Knights off the scoreboard in the bottom half of the inning as the Trailblazers completed the 16-11 comeback victory over Olney Central.

"This was a good team win," VU Head Baseball Coach Chris Barney said. "A lot of guys contributed. I'm excited about the way that we battled back after being down 9-4, coming back and being down 9-8, jumping ahead and continuing to add on, so that's a positive thing for us."

"Looking at some of the guys who contributed today, Douglas had four hits, Andrews had a two run home run and four RBIs, Montgomery had two RBIs with two singles, Gricius hit a ball off the wall and had a walk and a hit by pitch," Barney added. "Noble Johnson had a big two RBI hit late in the game, Wyatt Burris doubled early and a single and then obviously Bryce Gross with three RBIs with a home run, two doubles and four hits. A lot of guys contributed and that's a good thing to see going into the weekend. This is a good mid-week win for us and hopefully we can hang on to some of that momentum heading into the weekend."

Freshman Jakob Hoyer (Georgetown, Ind.) got the start on the mound for the Trailblazers, throwing the first inning, allowing two unearned runs on two hits and striking out one.

Freshman Jacob Allen (Vincennes, Ind.) pitched the second inning, allowing three runs, one earned on two hits and punching out three.

Freshman Kory Kingsbury (Evansville, Ind.) allowed four runs on four hits and struck out one in two thirds of an inning, before turning the game over to fellow freshman Ryan Rayburn (Columbus, Ind.) who threw one and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on one hit.

Sophomore Yancey Edlin (Pekin, Ind.) helped settle the ship on the mound, throwing three innings, allowing one run on one hit and striking out two.

Wyatt Burris retired the only batter he faced on two pitches before freshman Ty Stultz (Terre Haute, Ind.) took over, throwing two-thirds of an inning, allowing two hits and striking out one.

Bryce Gross took the mound to close out the game for the Trailblazers, facing two batters in two thirds of an inning and striking out one in just six pitches.

"Obviously Yancey Edlin did a great job for us," Barney said. "Then Wyatt Burris came in and got his out. Then Ty Stultz got an out right away and Bryce Gross coming in and getting the last two outs of the game was kind of how it was supposed to work out. We're excited for those guys who have done a good job, managed the game for us and gave us a chance in those situations."

The Trailblazers will look to carry this momentum into the weekend as the Blazers prepare for another Mid-West Athletic Conference series, this time squaring off against No. 14-ranked Parkland College.

The four-game weekend series will begin Friday, March 21 with the first two games played at Jerry Blemker Field in Vincennes. First pitch Friday is set for 1 p.m. eastern.

The series will then shift to Champaign, Ill. Saturday, March 22 for the final two games at Parkland College, first pitch Saturday is also scheduled for 1 p.m. eastern.

"It's just confidence," Barney said. "It's just confidence in trying to play well. We've still got some things to work on defensively but we're getting better and that's a good thing."

"This weekend is going to be a huge test for us," Barney added. "Parkland is Nationally ranked and they are playing well right now. They won three out of four against Lincoln Land and had a big 11-10 win last night after being down 9-2. They will be ready to go Friday at our place."

BOX SCORE

VU (11-12, 2-6) – 130   404   202 – 16

Olney Central – 234   010   100 – 11

VINCENNES HITTING

2B – Gross 2, Gricius, Burris. HR – Andrews, Gross. RBI – Andrews 4, Gross 3, Montgomery 2, Johnson 2, Douglas, Gricius. Sac Bunt – Andrews 2. SB – Douglas 2, Andrews, Montgomery, Gricius.