Midway, KY – In their second matchup of the season, #4 UC Baseball (37-5) blew past Midway (18-22) in a 23-7 run-rule victory on Tuesday afternoon at Don Ball Stadium. UC batters compiled 22 hits, while the pitching staff held the Eagles to just seven.

Caleb Plummer took his first career start on the mound and his first win of the season. The graduate student threw two strikeouts in 1.2 innings and allowed one hit. Cooper Morgan entered for 1.1 innings in relief with one strikeout. Joe Bertram threw two complete innings, recording one strikeout and allowing no hits. Dustin Sprong tallied one strikeout and no hits through one complete inning. Also throwing one inning, Michael Tolson marked two strikeouts and allowed two runs on two hits. The closer, Jake Kmiecik, pitched the final inning and allowed just one hit.

Charlie Muñiz batted an impressive 5-for-7, recording a double, a grand slam, for the third game in a row, and a season-high of seven RBIs. The shortstop, Alec Gonzalez, finished 4-for-6 and batted in four runs. Seth Benner and Clay Shelton both tallied a home run.

Early in the top of the first inning, UC jumped on the board to lead 3-0. Evan St. Claire was the first Patriot to reach base, on a walk, and scored when the next batter, Charlie Muñiz, sent an RBI double to left center. Max Harper was hit by pitch and both base runners advanced to scoring position on a wild pitch. With bases loaded after Johnboy Rittenhouse was issued a walk, Ben Snapp singled to the shortstop, sending Muniz across the plate. Caden Petrey walked in a run to end the inning.

Cumberlands tacked on two more runs in the top of the second, to lead 5-0. Christian Thompson was issued a lead-off walk and advanced to second on a single by St. Claire. To juice the bases, Harper was walked, and two runners scored on an Alec Gonzalez RBI single.

The Eagles responded with three runs on a passed ball and an RBI single, trailing 5-3, in the bottom of two.

In the top of the third, the Patriots recorded four hits to plate six runs, extending the lead to 11-3. Back-to-back-to-back walks handed to Petrey, Clay Shelton, and Thompson loaded the bases early in the inning. A pair of RBI singles by Muñiz and Harper sent three runs across the plate. The bases were re-loaded after Rittenhouse sent a single up the middle, and Gonzalez enabled Muñiz and Harper to score. On a groundout to third base from Petrey, Rittenhouse went home for the final run of the inning.

Midway put one run on the board in the bottom of the third, 11-4, with an RBI single.

Thompson hit a ground-rule double to reach base, and headed home on an RBI double by Rittenhouse, for a Cumberlands lead of 12-4, after four.

UC added insurance runs to raise the score to 15-4, in the top of the fifth frame. The lead-off batter, Snapp, was walked and sent home when Clay Shelton homered for the first time this season. In the next at-bat, Thompson reached on a walk and advanced to second on a balk by Midway's pitcher. Muñiz sent Thompson across the plate with a single to right field.

In the bottom of five, the Eagles scored one run off a wild pitch, 15-5.

Midway trimmed the gap to 15-7 with a two RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning.

The Pats marked an explosive eighth inning, plating eight runs off five hits to secure the 23-7 run-rule victory. Gonzalez opened the inning with a single to left field, and Snapp followed with a double. Gonzalez took an opportunity to score on a wild pitch, while Petrey was issued a walk. Another wild pitch sent Snapp home and Petrey to second and eventually, third. Shelton walked, Thompson loaded the bases after being hit by a pitch, and Evan St. Claire walked in a run. With bases full of Patriots, Muñiz knocked his third grand slam of the season to left field. The final run of the game was scored by Seth Benner, with his second home run of the season.

No. 4 UC will return to Doyle Buhl Stadium to host Cumberland University in a Mid-South Conference series, beginning with a single game at 3 p.m. on Friday April 19^th.

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