-
15
Eastern Illinois EASTERN 4-6
20
Winner Northern Ky. NORTHERN 7-4
Eastern Illinois EASTERN
4-6
15
Final
20
Northern Ky. NORTHERN
7-4
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Eastern Illinois EASTERN 3 1 1 2 0 0 1 7 0 15 15 2
Northern Ky. NORTHERN 0 0 1 6 3 3 3 4 X 20 15 0

W: Cortner, Kyle (1-0) L: D. Boruff (0-3) S: Gill, Ryan (1)

Game Recap: Baseball |

NKU Baseball seals sweep of Eastern Illinois with 20-run outburst

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. — Northern Kentucky University Norse baseball wrapped up its first home series of the 2026 season on Sunday, taking on Eastern Illinois in the series finale. Northern Kentucky fell behind early, but rallied to score 19 runs over its final five innings at the plate, securing a 20-15 victory over the Panthers. 

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky - 20, Eastern Illinois - 15
LOCATION: Bill Aker Baseball Complex - Highland Heights, Ky.
RECORDS: Northern Kentucky: 7-4 (0-0 Horizon) | Eastern Illinois: 4-6 (0-0 OVC)

GAME SUMMARY
– EIU scored the first five runs of the game and took a seven-one lead in the fourth inning, but NKU rallied in the bottom of the fourth, scoring six runs capped by a Hunter Friedberg grand slam to tie the game at seven. An Ethan Thomas three-run shot in the fifth gave the Norse a 10-7 lead, extended by Pierce Bauerle's two-run triple in the sixth. The Norse led for the rest of the game, despite giving up seven runs in the eighth inning, and added some insurance in the bottom of the eighth, scoring four runs. Ryan Gill slammed the door and earned the save, his first of the season. 

BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN 
– Northern Kentucky threw nine pitchers in the game, as Elijah Green got the start and threw 2.2 innings, allowing five runs. Other notable pitchers included Kyle Cortner, who threw a pair of scoreless innings and notched his first win of the season, and Ryan Gill, who threw the final one and a third without allowing a run. 
– Offensively, the Norse put up 15 hits in 37 at-bats, drawing eight walks and a pair of hit by pitches while striking out eight times. 
– Pierce Bauerle finished the day 3-6 with five RBIs, a run scored and a triple.
– Hunter Friedberg went 2-3 with a double and a homer, driving in seven runs and scoring thrice while walking once. 
– Mark Nowak finished 3-5 with a double, two RBI, and a run scored. 
– Jake Paulick went 2-5 with an RBI, a run scored, and a walk.
– Marcus Harrison finished 2-4 with three runs scored and a walk.
– Ethan Thomas went 1-2 with a home run, driving in three and scoring four times as he walked once and was hit by a pitch twice. 
– Alex Brazer with 1-2 with three walks, four runs scored, and an RBI. 
– Landon Springmeyer finished 1-4 with two runs scored, a double, and a walk.

UP NEXT
NKU takes on Indiana on Tuesday.

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