MUNCIE, IN ? Toledo surrendered the game's final three runs and suffered an 8-6 loss to Ball State on Friday afternoon at the Ball Diamond. With the loss, the Rockets fall to 21-29 overall and 14-12 in the Mid-American Conference, while the Cardinals (26-23, 14-10) secured the West Division title for the seventh time in school history. With only one game remaining in the regular season, UT needs a win or an Eastern Michigan setback tomorrow to finish second in the division.

 

Sophomore RHP Matt Kuna (4-2) picked up just his second loss of the season, allowing seven runs (six earned) on nine hits with four strikeouts in 5.1 frames. A pair of Rocket relievers combined for 2.2 innings of two-hit baseball but yielding a critical insurance run

 

Senior Jake Oester paced the Rockets' offensively with a pair of hits, including a three-run home run in the fourth inning. Oester was the only UT player to tally more than one hit against a trio of BSU pitchers.

 

The Cardinals exploded out of the gates, tallying four runs in its first at-bat. The home team collected four hits in the opening frame, including three for extra-bases, to race out to the early 4-0 advantage.

 

The Rockets then started their comeback with one run in the second against Ball State starter Brad Piatt. Junior Aaron Dudley led off the frame with a single and Oester followed with a single to put runners at the corners with one out. Sophomore Jim Vahalik came to the plate and delivered a sacrifice fly to plate UT's first run.

           
Toledo fought all the way back and tied the game with three runs in the fourth as Oester cleared the bases with one swing at 4-4. The following inning, the Rockets took their first lead, as junior Tim Krofcheck hit a solo home run to put the visitors ahead 5-4.

 

Unfortunately, the Cardinals responded right back in the bottom of the fifth inning as Jeremy Hazelbaker hit his second triple of the game to lead off the frame. Nate Fields then drove in the Cardinals' fifth run as he grounded out to shortstop to knot the game at 5-5.

           
After Toledo re-took the lead with one run in the sixth on a RBI pinch-hit double by freshman Joe Corfman, BSU answered back in the bottom half of the inning with a pair of tallies to go ahead for good at 7-6. The home team then finished off the scoring with an insurance run in the seventh frame to make it a two-run final difference.

 

BSU's Tom Mueller (2-2) earned the victory in relief, yielding one unearned run on one hit in 2.2 innings.

 

Kolbrin Vitek (2-for-5, 2 R, RBI), T.J. Baumet (2-for-4, R) and Hazelbaker (2-for-4, 2 R) each recorded multi-hit efforts for the home team, which finished with 11 hits off five UT hurlers.

 

The teams will close out the series and the regular season tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.