The VMI baseball team was one out away from a victory in the series opener Friday night at East Tennessee State University, but the Bucs rallied for a 9-8 win in 10 innings in a Southern Conference game from Thomas Stadium.
VMI led 8-3 in the seventh inning. ETSU scored one in the seventh and one in the eighth, but were down to the final out, trailing 8-5 with two on in the ninth. Noah Webb connected on for a three-run home run to tie the game and force extra innings. The Keydets loaded the bases in the top of the ninth with two outs but a groundout ended the threat and the Bucs Tommy Barth singled to send home the winning run, again with two outs.
VMI took a 2-0 lead in the first after a two-run double from Zac Morris, but ETSU countered with three in the bottom of the frame.
The two starters settled down after the opening inning and the score remained 3-2 until the Keydets scored five runs in the fifth inning. Brett Cook led off with a walk, Will Knight singled and Trey Morgan was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Cole Jenkins hit a two-run single and Morris laid down a suicide squeeze to bring home another run. Reeves Whitmore walked and Cole Garrett singled to plate Jenkins. Jed Barrett was successful on VMI’s second suicide squeeze of the inning to bring in Whitmore and make the score 7-3.
Jenkins hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth to extend the Keydet lead to five.
Knight was 3-5 with three runs scored and a walk. Cook went 2-4 with two runs, two walks and a double and Jenkins and Morris each had three RBI. Garrett, Morris and Barrett each had two hits on the evening and Whitmore had a hit and a walk.
Barth went 4-6 with a double for ETSU (22-12/4-3 SoCon) and Garrett Wallace had three hits.
VMI (12-27/3-4) left 10 runners on base while the Bucs left five on.
The two teams will play the middle game of the series Saturday at 2 p.m.
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