Southeast Missouri State baseball team finally finds a way past Billikens

~ Southeast struck for four runs in the eighth inning for a 6-2 win over SLU

Matt Tellor and Derek Gibson combined for four RBIs as the Southeast Missouri State baseball team avenged an earlier loss to Saint Louis University with a 6-2 win Tuesday in St. Louis.

The Redhawks (25-11) broke a tie with four runs in the eighth inning for their first win over the Billikens in three years. Saint Louis (20-14) had beaten Southeast 11-8 on March 18 at Capaha Field.

Scott City product Skylar Cobb (3-0) was the winning pitcher for the Redhawks. The senior left-hander pitched a scoreless seventh in which he allowed one hit, one walk and struck out one.

Southeast, which had eight hits on the day, broke a 2-2 tie in the eighth inning on a two-out single through the right side from Gibson. The single scored Clayton Evans and Jason Blum to give Southeast a 4-2 lead. Gibson, who leads Southeast with 46 RBIs, finished the day batting one for three with two RBIs and a run scored.

Evans had drawn a one-out walk from Damian Rivera (2-4), the third Billiken pitcher of the day, and Blum followed with a single. After Cole Bieser flied out for the second out, Tellor drew a walk to load the bases for Gibson.

Andy Lennington, who went 3 for 4, extended the inning with a double to the left-field wall to score Tellor. A throwing error by the Billikens allowed Gibson to score for a 6-2 lead.

Brady Wright pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth, giving up just one hit in his two innings on the mound. Wright allowed a lead-off double in the ninth, but snuffed out any chance at a comeback by getting the next two batters to strike out to secure the win for the Redhawks.

Southeast starter Tyler Iago allowed seven hits over 5 1/3 innings. Iago allowed two earned runs and walked one.

Tellor collected his first RBI of the day and put the Redhawks on the board 1-0 in the first inning on a sacrifice fly to left field. Blum tagged up from third base and scored easily on the play.

Blum reached base on a single to begin the game, stole second base and advanced to third on a sacrifice fly from Bieser.

Blum went 2 for 5 and scored two runs.

SLU knotted the score at 1-1 in the third inning on an RBI single by Braxton Martinez.

The game remained tied until the sixth when both teams scored a run in the inning.

Southeast's run came off the bat of Tellor, who again hit a sacrifice fly to score Bieser for a 2-1 lead. Bieser was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning then advanced all the way to third on an errant pick-off attempt by Billikens starting pitcher Zach Girrens.

SLU countered in the bottom of the inning with a sacrifice fly of their own to tie the score 2-2.

Iago had hit Martinez to open the inning and gave up a double to Colton Frabasilio as the Billikens had runners at second and third with nobody out. Iago retired Danny Mannion on a comebacker before yielding to Alex Siddle, who allowed a sacrifice fly to Drew Curtis to tie the score before retiring the side.

Southeast, which leads the Ohio Valley Conference, will return to league play on Thursday against Eastern Illinois at Capaha Field.