TROY, Ala. – The Northern Kentucky University baseball team fell to Troy, 20-11, on Sunday afternoon at Riddle-Pace Field. Marquez Oates (W, 1-0) picks up the win after 2.1 innings of work for Troy and Kurt Lange (L, 0-1) is slated with the loss for the Norse. NKU is now 0-4 to begin the 2020 campaign while Troy stays perfect.
AT THE PLATE
- Griffin Doersching had a great day, batting 4-for-5 with a pair of extra-base hits and driving in three runs. The four-hit game ties his career high, which last happened at Youngstown State on May 11, 2018.
- Collin Luty also had a successful outing, going 3-for-4 with an RBI.
- Although he went 1-for-4, Jayden Wakeham made his hit count, driving in three to score off a double.
- Jackson Haas scored two with a double, finishing the day 1-for-5.
- Sam Hedges (1-for-5) and Billy Marion (1-for-4) also had hits in the game.
ON THE MOUND
- Jared Flueck started for his Norse debut. The junior tossed for five innings, yielding seven runs, eight hits and a walk, while punching out three.
- Lange made it through one third of an inning, giving up three runs.
- Tyler Ollier had a third-inning of relief, letting two runs by.
- JT McGee allowed a pair of runs and a couple of walks.
- Noah Richardson threw for a third of an inning, giving up a run and three hits. He also had a strikeout to his name.
- Tyler Murphy contributed a frame to the effort, allowing four runs off of as many hits.
- Blaine Walters closed things out in the final frame, letting one run through and two hits.
KEY MOMENTS
- NKU circled four runners around the diamond to get out to an early lead in the top of the first. Hedges reached through a fielding error and Murray kept things rolling with a double. The pair was plated when Doersching came up to bat and doubled down the third-base line.
- Following Doersching's hit, Wakeham filled up the count and walked, giving Luty the opportunity to single up center and score the duo on base.
- Troy piled on five runs of its own in the bottom of the first to take the lead.
- NKU retaliated in the next inning with another four runs to go up 8-5. Marion and Hedges led off with base hits and Murray walked to load things up. Doersching sent Marion home with a right-field single and Wakeham returned three to the Norse dugout with a double to centerfield.
- Troy trimmed NKU's lead to one in the fourth after the Norse gave up a home run, a double and a single to start off the frame.
- Troy tacked on eight runs in the sixth inning to take a comfortable lead.
- In the seventh inning, Doersching's big day continued with a leadoff double. Luty then reached base after being hit by a pitch and Haas flung a ball down the left-field line for a double and two scores.
- The Trojans scored another four runs in their half of the seventh. With runners on the corners, four batters generated a score at a time through a sac fly, a triple, a single and a double.
- NKU's last run of the day came in the eighth when Murray tagged a fastball that just made it past the right-field wall for the home run.
- Two doubles for Troy in the bottom of the eighth scored the last run of the afternoon.