By Brandon Burke, UT Martin Sports Information
Game 1
CONWAY, Ark. – Slicing his way through 32 batters en route to a complete game and shutout performance on Friday afternoon, sophomore pitcher Rhett Fetner’s dynamite showing on the mound paved the way for a cruise control win by the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball squad to begin the weekend against Central Arkansas on the road.
Only letting a total of four hits sneak by while eclipsing the triple-digit mark at 101 tosses, Fetner and the rest of the Skyhawk defense was impenetrable against the Bears in a hostile environment, improving to 5-7 on the year while simultaneously ending a UCA seven-game winning streak throughout the all-time series.
Establishing the program’s second-ever W at Bear Stadium in Conway, UT Martin was lifted to their first shutout win of the semester by only walking two players and not committing a single error all afternoon. In a contest that was bumped up in time to avoid impending inclement weather later on Friday, the Skyhawks boosted their season-total to 88 hits with eight more against Central Arkansas, proving more than enough to pull away.
Not wasting any time putting the scoreboard to work, UTM struck first in their very first turn at bat for the second consecutive meeting. With Will Smith and Jack Culumovic already occupying two bases thanks to a walk and a single up the middle, sophomore first-baseman Wil LaFollette punched in his fourth and fifth RBI of the year on a rightfield double that put the visitors ahead by a deuce.
Central Arkansas would only muster a couple of hits that ultimately gained no traction by the time the navy and orange increased their advantage to three, doing so on a base-hit from Nate Self in the top of the 4th to bring home second-baseman Alec Beaman. Beaman had been elsewhere in the infield over the past three games while regular starting shortstop Casey Harford recovered from injury, returning to the fold on Friday as the cleanup hitter.
Smith and catcher Chance Merithew accounted for the rest of the Skyhawks’ hit count in the one-sided affair, while Beaman and Culumovic finished the afternoon at 4/6 combined with the bat in their hands. Additionally, Smith, Culumovic, Beaman, and leftfielder Benny DeTrude made life even tougher on the Bears by each stealing a base with no mishaps.
Fetner’s lights-out execution gave the JUCO transfer his third straight individual win for a 3-1 total, going the distance for the first time in a Skyhawk uniform to aid UTM to their first victory in Conway since 2002.
Senior shortstop Casey Harford gathered a grand total of six RBI while the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball squad counted 14 runs on Sunday afternoon, engaging in a non-conference doubleheader against both Creighton and Central Arkansas once the previous evening’s snowstorm had whittled away.
Coming up on the short end of a 15-4 decision against the Bluejays in the programs’ first encounter since 2008 to begin the afternoon, the Skyhawks were bested slightly in the nightcap during a high-octane scoring affair, as the Bears eked out a 13-10 win that avenged a UTM shutout victory two days prior.
Reaching 20 hits as a unit to bring their 2022 total up to 108, the navy and orange now possess an overall record of 5-9 awaiting Tuesday’s return home versus Southern Illinois. First pitch against the Salukis at Skyhawk Field will take place at 5:00 p.m.
Game 2 – Creighton def. UT Martin 15-4
In a contest featuring four home runs from both sides together, both Harford and sophomore first-baseman Wil LaFollette took the ball past the outfield perimeter against Creighton, accounting for all four of UTM’s runs that also scored Will Smith and Jack Culumovic.
The bottom of the 5th and 7th innings marked the Skyhawks’ longshots – two of the team’s three homers on Sunday – while three separate UTM performers reached more than one hit. Smith, Harford, and catcher Chance Merithew added up for a 6/10 showing at the plate, powered by the team’s 12th and 13th HR’s of the semester.
Junior righty Seth Petry was granted the start in the teams’ first meeting in 14 years, pitching 4.1 innings on 80 tosses. Noah Walters, Warren Lee, Eli Martin, and J. Henry Hobson provided relief on the mound as UTM transitioned into a second matchup with Central Arkansas later on in the afternoon.
Game 3 – Central Arkansas def. UT Martin 13-10
Evolving into a shootout over the course of the Skyhawks’ final game in Conway, UT Martin embarked on a 7-0 scoring run that lasted four frames before ultimately falling shy of the win. Accounting for seven of the roster’s 12 hits, the trio of Harford, Smith, and second-baseman Alec Beaman administered the biggest highlights of the contest (including the first career homer from Beaman in the top of the 4th).
Scoring thrice in the 3rd period in the second half of Sunday’s DH, Merithew registered the game’s first run after previously getting on base with a single, sprinting to home on a ground-out to shortstop. A two-RBI double from Harford – bringing Smith and centerfielder Benny DeTrude around the bases – increased the visitors’ lead to 3-0.
Beaman’s first collegiate bomb – and the team’s 14th of the year from 10 different players – pushed the advantage to 4-1 in the top of the 4th. The next two runs of the contest came off the bat of Harford yet again (scoring Smith both times), while the avalanche continued in the 7th courtesy of a two-RBI laser from Beaman and a triple by designated hitter Houston Wright.
The 7-0 burst was topped off by a base-hit down the middle from third-baseman Hunter McLean that brought the lead to 10-1. By the time the Skyhawks’ turn at-bat concluded in the 7th, they had registered their third five-run inning of 2022.
UTM starter Matt Dickey ended his day by only letting three hits get by in four full innings of work, relieved by Baylor Jones, Trey Ricko, Blake Davis, and Tucker Reed following six strikeouts.
Switching gears to Tuesday’s matchup with Southern Illinois, the Salukis will bring a 13-3 record with them to Martin for the mid-week showdown.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information