TicketsWACO, Texas – The University of Cincinnati baseball team pounded out 15 hits on Friday at Baylor but wound up on the losing end of an 8-6 decision.
UC trailed the entire game, but got a late spark from Josh Kross in the eighth inning. His one-out grand slam trimmed the deficit to two, 8-6, and gave the Bearcats (16-12, 4-4 Big 12) a much-needed lift. Cincinnati couldn't push across another run though, ending the game at 8-6 to set up a rubber match on Saturday.
Kross' home run was his 11th of the season, keeping him in a tie with Texas' Mac Belyeu for the Big 12 home run lead.
UC's 15 hits are the most in a loss this season. Six different players had multi-hit efforts, led by Kerrington Cross and Josh Hegemann's three-hit performances. Kross, Lauden Brooks, Tommy O'Connor, and Hunter Jessee all had two hits apiece.
Jones and Hegemann also drove in runs for Cincinnati, both tallying RBI singles.
Three different pitchers saw time on the mound on Friday. Tommy Boba made the start while Carson Marsh and Joey Hurth made appearances out of the bullpen.
Cincinnati and Baylor will conclude their series on Saturday at 2 PM ET.
// HOW IT HAPPENED
A three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning gave Baylor an early 3-0 lead. Cincinnati got one of those runs back in the top of the second on an RBI single from Alec Jones to make the score 3-1.
The Bears made it 5-1 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run double, but UC responded quickly again with a run in the top of the fifth. This time it was Josh Hegemann who chipped away at the deficit, singling to left field to score Kerrington Cross and put the score at 5-2.
Baylor added runs in the fifth and seventh innings to increase its lead to 8-2. In the top of the eighth, Lauden Brooks, Tommy O'Connor, and Cross recorded three straight singles to load the bases, and Josh Kross unloaded them with a grand slam. He lifted an 0-1 pitch over the fence in left-center field to make it an 8-6 ballgame.
Unfortunately, that would be the final hit of the night for UC. The Bears retired the next five hitters in order to end the game and even the series.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For up-to-the-minute updates, follow @GoBearcatsBASE on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
NOTE: All dates and times are subject to change due to weather. All schedule changes will be announced on Twitter at @GoBearcatsBASE.
UC trailed the entire game, but got a late spark from Josh Kross in the eighth inning. His one-out grand slam trimmed the deficit to two, 8-6, and gave the Bearcats (16-12, 4-4 Big 12) a much-needed lift. Cincinnati couldn't push across another run though, ending the game at 8-6 to set up a rubber match on Saturday.
Kross' home run was his 11th of the season, keeping him in a tie with Texas' Mac Belyeu for the Big 12 home run lead.
UC's 15 hits are the most in a loss this season. Six different players had multi-hit efforts, led by Kerrington Cross and Josh Hegemann's three-hit performances. Kross, Lauden Brooks, Tommy O'Connor, and Hunter Jessee all had two hits apiece.
Jones and Hegemann also drove in runs for Cincinnati, both tallying RBI singles.
Three different pitchers saw time on the mound on Friday. Tommy Boba made the start while Carson Marsh and Joey Hurth made appearances out of the bullpen.
Cincinnati and Baylor will conclude their series on Saturday at 2 PM ET.
// HOW IT HAPPENED
A three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning gave Baylor an early 3-0 lead. Cincinnati got one of those runs back in the top of the second on an RBI single from Alec Jones to make the score 3-1.
The Bears made it 5-1 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run double, but UC responded quickly again with a run in the top of the fifth. This time it was Josh Hegemann who chipped away at the deficit, singling to left field to score Kerrington Cross and put the score at 5-2.
Baylor added runs in the fifth and seventh innings to increase its lead to 8-2. In the top of the eighth, Lauden Brooks, Tommy O'Connor, and Cross recorded three straight singles to load the bases, and Josh Kross unloaded them with a grand slam. He lifted an 0-1 pitch over the fence in left-center field to make it an 8-6 ballgame.
Unfortunately, that would be the final hit of the night for UC. The Bears retired the next five hitters in order to end the game and even the series.
// FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For up-to-the-minute updates, follow @GoBearcatsBASE on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
NOTE: All dates and times are subject to change due to weather. All schedule changes will be announced on Twitter at @GoBearcatsBASE.