By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University baseball built an early 3-0 lead but Emporia State used a four-run seventh inning to even the series with a 5-4 win Saturday at Steve Anson Stadium.
The Ichabods and Hornets will face off in the rubber match at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Washburn, now 19-27 overall and 15-17 in the MIAA, jumped out to a 3-0 advantage in the bottom of the first inning as Ian Luce started things with a one-out single and Jack Borgmann walked to put two Ichabods on base.
Levi Risenhoover had a pair of doubles and reached base three times in Washburn's 5-4 loss to Emporia State. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Levi Risenhoover doubled to plate Luce for a 1-0 lead before Easton Wasinger slashed a single to right field that scored two more runs.
Topekan Maclane Finley went six innings on the mound for Washburn and allowed just one unearned run in Saturday's 5-4 MIAA loss to Emporia State. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Seaman product Maclane Finley made the pitching start for Washburn and went 6.0 innings, striking out five and allowing just one unearned run.
The Hornets (32-14, 19-13) took an advantage of a pair of Ichabod errors in the field to score one run in the top of the fifth but Finley delivered a scoreless sixth to wrap up his outing.
In the seventh inning Emporia State loaded the bases on three straight singles by Dylan Brisbois, Brady Unrein and Gus Keller.
An RBI groundout by Tyler Coffin and an Evan Abbott fielder's choice scored two runs to tie the game before Noah Steele doubled to cap the four-run frame and give Emporia State a 5-3 lead.
In the home half of the seventh Jackson Mervosh and Brooks Richardson both slashed singles to put WU runners at the corners.
With two outs Trenton Barry found a hole on the left side of the infield to score Mervosh and pull the Ichabods within one run.
The Ichabods left two on base in the seventh and went down in order in the eighth inning.
Caleb Lunnon took over on the mound for Washburn in the eighth with a 1-2-3 inning before leaving two Hornets stranded in a scoreless ninth.
But Washburn was unable to even up the score in the ninth.
The Ichabods led 12-8 in hits while also leading 4-2 in walks drawn. In the field they committed three errors to just one for Emporia State.
Nathon Cruz went going 2-5 for Emporia State while Noah Steele went 1-3 with two RBI and reached base three times.
Mervosh went 3-5 for Washburn while Wasinger went 2-4 and drove in a pair of runs and Risenhoover went 2-4 with a pair of doubles and a walk.
Seth Stover got the pitching start for Emporia State and capped off his outing with a scoreless bottom of the fifth, with Washburn ending the inning with the bases loaded.
Both teams picked up just one hit over the final two frames, but both went scoreless as ESU's Grant Huffman recorded the final seven outs to pick up his eighth save.
Brandon Vassallo picked up his first win for Emporia State.
