Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Friday, March 31
4:00 PM CT
Middle Tennessee
12-13, 0
10
vs
7
FIU
13-14, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
FIU
1
0
2
0
3
0
0
1
0
7
12
1
Middle Tennessee
2
0
3
3
2
0
0
0
X
10
11
0
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lee, Justin (2-1)
L: CABARCAS,Ryan (0-3)
S: Sells, James (3)
Batting:
2B: ROSARIO, Mike 1
HR: ROSARIO, Mike 1
RBI: ROSARIO, Mike 2 ; CARPIO, Ruben 2 ; GIRARDI, Dante 1 ; SANCHEZ, Alec 1 ; GUIDA, Ryne 1
SF: ROSARIO, Mike 1 ; GIRARDI, Dante 1
Base Running:
RUNS: ROSARIO, Mike 3 ; WALLEN, Henry 1 ; RONEY, Brendan 1 ; QUEVEDO, Roylan 2
Batting:
HR: Mabry, JT 1 ; Coker, Brett 1
RBI: Mabry, JT 2 ; Coker, Brett 2 ; Boyd, Jeremiah 2 ; Rutter, Briggs 1 ; Galloway, Jackson 1 ; Wright, DJ 2
SH: Galloway, Jackson 1
SF: Mabry, JT 1 ; Wright, DJ 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Mabry, JT 3 ; Coker, Brett 3 ; Boyd, Jeremiah 2 ; Avros, Gino 1 ; Vinson, Luke 1
SB: Galloway, Jackson 1 ; Vinson, Luke 1
CS: Coker, Brett 1 ; Vinson, Luke 1
HBP: Coker, Brett 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
3
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ BaseballC
/ BaseballSS
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Photo by: MT Athletic Communications
Offense Sparks Series Opening Win Over FIU
3/31/2023 8:03:00 PM | Baseball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The first at bat Friday evening was a JT Mabry home run for Middle Tennessee Baseball.
The second one was a homer by Brett Coker.
Those swings foreshadowed two hours and 35 minutes of offense at Reese Smith Jr. Field. Fortunately for the Blue Raiders, they had a little more firepower than FIU on Friday, as the home team would enjoy a 10-7 win over the FIU Panthers to open the three-game Conference USA series.
After the Panthers took a 3-2 lead in the third with a pair of runs, MTSU responded with its first of two three-run frames. The Raiders sent all nine batters to the plate in the third, and leaning on RBI from DH Jeremiah Boyd, LF Jackson Galloway and 1B DJ Wright, they never trailed again.
MTSU added to its lead an inning later, getting each of its first four batters on base and getting RBI singles from Boyd and C Briggs Rutter. Wright followed with his second sacrifice fly of the night to make it 8-3 after four innings.
After the Panthers cut the margin to just two in the top of the fifth, the Blue Raiders responded with additional RBI from Mabry and Coker to recreate separation. And while FIU added another in the eighth, the visitors never come closer than within three late, thanks to the efforts of James Sells, who allowed just one earned run across a 4.2 inning save.
The Skipper Speaks
"[Hitting Coach Kevin Nichols] had our guys ready to face their starter, who has been really good at times. It was a well-executed gameplan against him early on, especially with the wind blowing like it was. We were just trying to not do too much and make the pitcher work a little bit. They hit a solo shot and we answered right away. That was big. A lot of things in that game were played into us having a chance to win. Consistently tacking on more after we scored was a big part of it, but we played really good defense as well," head coach Jerry Meyers said.
Player Perspective – SS Brett Coker
"We watched some film on their starting pitcher. We tried to stay on the fastball, and wind was blowing out to right, so we were trying to hit that wind stream," said Coker. "We were staying focused the entire night. It's good when we string hits together."
By the Numbers
3: The top three men in the order Friday – Mabry, Boyd and Coker – each provided multiple hits and two RBI. Coker was 3-4, Boyd was 2-4 with a walk and Mabry went 2-3 with a walk. Wright also added a pair of RBI via the sacrifice fly.
3.0: RHP Bryant Beranek had his first Friday start and went 3.0 innings with a strikeout. It was a no-decision for the Spring Hill, Tenn. native, with the win going to Justin Lee after tossing 1.1 frames.
.500: MTSU hit .500 on the night with runners in scoring position.
Blue Raider Notes
Mabry's leadoff, first inning homer was the first by a Blue Raider to open a game since May 7 of last season, when Fausto Lopez led off with a homer against FIU ironically.
For the eighth time in 10 games, the Raiders had 10 or more hits.
MTSU is 11-3 on the year when scoring at least six runs and moves to 6-1 on Fridays.
Next Up
The teams are back in action for Game 2 of the series tomorrow at Reese Smith Jr. Field. First Pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. CT. ESPN+ will carry the game's stream and WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App will have the radio broadcast.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
The second one was a homer by Brett Coker.
Those swings foreshadowed two hours and 35 minutes of offense at Reese Smith Jr. Field. Fortunately for the Blue Raiders, they had a little more firepower than FIU on Friday, as the home team would enjoy a 10-7 win over the FIU Panthers to open the three-game Conference USA series.
After the Panthers took a 3-2 lead in the third with a pair of runs, MTSU responded with its first of two three-run frames. The Raiders sent all nine batters to the plate in the third, and leaning on RBI from DH Jeremiah Boyd, LF Jackson Galloway and 1B DJ Wright, they never trailed again.
MTSU added to its lead an inning later, getting each of its first four batters on base and getting RBI singles from Boyd and C Briggs Rutter. Wright followed with his second sacrifice fly of the night to make it 8-3 after four innings.
After the Panthers cut the margin to just two in the top of the fifth, the Blue Raiders responded with additional RBI from Mabry and Coker to recreate separation. And while FIU added another in the eighth, the visitors never come closer than within three late, thanks to the efforts of James Sells, who allowed just one earned run across a 4.2 inning save.
The Skipper Speaks
"[Hitting Coach Kevin Nichols] had our guys ready to face their starter, who has been really good at times. It was a well-executed gameplan against him early on, especially with the wind blowing like it was. We were just trying to not do too much and make the pitcher work a little bit. They hit a solo shot and we answered right away. That was big. A lot of things in that game were played into us having a chance to win. Consistently tacking on more after we scored was a big part of it, but we played really good defense as well," head coach Jerry Meyers said.
Player Perspective – SS Brett Coker
"We watched some film on their starting pitcher. We tried to stay on the fastball, and wind was blowing out to right, so we were trying to hit that wind stream," said Coker. "We were staying focused the entire night. It's good when we string hits together."
By the Numbers
3: The top three men in the order Friday – Mabry, Boyd and Coker – each provided multiple hits and two RBI. Coker was 3-4, Boyd was 2-4 with a walk and Mabry went 2-3 with a walk. Wright also added a pair of RBI via the sacrifice fly.
3.0: RHP Bryant Beranek had his first Friday start and went 3.0 innings with a strikeout. It was a no-decision for the Spring Hill, Tenn. native, with the win going to Justin Lee after tossing 1.1 frames.
.500: MTSU hit .500 on the night with runners in scoring position.
Blue Raider Notes
Mabry's leadoff, first inning homer was the first by a Blue Raider to open a game since May 7 of last season, when Fausto Lopez led off with a homer against FIU ironically.
For the eighth time in 10 games, the Raiders had 10 or more hits.
MTSU is 11-3 on the year when scoring at least six runs and moves to 6-1 on Fridays.
Next Up
The teams are back in action for Game 2 of the series tomorrow at Reese Smith Jr. Field. First Pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. CT. ESPN+ will carry the game's stream and WGNS 101.9 FM / 1450 AM (Murfreesboro), WGNS 100.5 FM (Smyrna), GoBlueRaiders.com and the Varsity Network App will have the radio broadcast.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with the Blue Raiders on Twitter (@MT_Baseball), Facebook (Blue Raider Baseball) and Instagram (@MT_Baseball).
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