Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
Central Michigan
Baseball Drops Battle of MAC West Elite, 4-2, at Central Michigan
5/6/2006 6:19:49 PM | Baseball
Trumaine Riley notches first career home run
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The Eastern Michigan University baseball team came out on the short end of a pitchers duel falling to in-state rival Central Michigan, 4-2, here at Theunissen Stadium, Saturday afternoon.
Senior pitcher Will Stewardson led EMU (26-19, 13-7-MAC) on the mound with a solid effort going 7.1 innings with two strikeouts while allowing only five hits and three runs (two unearned). CMU (29-18, 14-6 MAC) also got a great effort from sophomore Josh Collmenter who struck out 10 over eight innings to pick up his sixth win of the season.
Junior Trumaine Riley led the Eagles offensively going a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and one run scored. He almost hit for the cycle with two singles, a triple and an inside-the-park home run, which was his first career home run. Sophomore Josh Ivan increased his hitting streak to 18 games going 1-for-4 at the plate.
No runs came across the plate until the bottom of the sixth inning as Central Michigan’s Troy Moratti scored on a fielding error by Riley on a ball hit to center field for a 1-0 lead.
Riley took little time to make up for his error in the top of the seventh as he hit a shot to straight-away center field over the center fielder’s head and completed the inside-the-park home run sliding head-first into home plate to tie the score at 1-1.
CMU took the its second lead of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning as Bryan Mitzel hit a three-run home run down the left field line off of freshman Kevin Wammes for a 4-1 advantage.
The Eagles mounted a rally in the top of the ninth as Derek Lehrman doubled down the right field line and moved to third base on a Matt Moffett fly out. Powell pitch hit and stuck out. Riley notched a clutch triple to drive in Leherman but it was not enough and Kyle Rhoad popped up to end the game.
EMU and Central Michigan will play the series finale, Sunday, May 7, at 1 p.m.
