Little Rock overcame an early five-run deficit on April 18, surging back with 11 unanswered runs to secure an 11-7 victory over Eastern Illinois at Gary Hogan Field. The win allowed the Trojans to clinch a key Ohio Valley Conference series.
The game began with Eastern Illinois scoring five runs in the first inning, but Little Rock responded by steadily closing the gap and eventually taking control of the contest. Head coach Chris Curry said, “A great job today to win the series. Eastern Illinois is a tough team that we faced in the OVC Championship game last season, and it wouldn’t surprise me if that happened again. We got down five runs in the first inning, and that wasn’t the plan, but we never panicked. We kept hitting and got back in the game.”
Angel Cano put Little Rock on the board with an RBI single in the third inning before Blake Simpson added a sacrifice fly. The momentum continued into a pivotal fourth inning where Jerdy Lopez hit an RBI double and Kade Smith tied it up with a two-run single. Nolan Freund then gave Little Rock its first lead of the day.
The fifth inning saw Little Rock take advantage of errors by Eastern Illinois, scoring five more runs through contributions from Cooper Chaplain, Lopez, Smith, Simpson, and Freund. “Hitting is all confidence, and it is contagious,” Smith said. “Everyone started hitting, and we are going up to the plate carefree and confident.”
Smith led Little Rock’s offense with three hits and three RBI while Freund contributed three hits and two RBI as part of an overall team total of 18 hits.
Assistant coach Matt Parker commented on facing opposing pitcher Bryce Riggs: “We talk about how to beat an ace—you don’t have to beat him, you just can’t let him stay in the game long enough to beat you… He had only walked 17 all year, and we got two walks and nine hits. That is huge.” Parker also said that staying patient at bat was key after falling behind early.
On pitching duty for Little Rock were Brigden Parker—who settled after a rough start—Luke Schimmels (earning his second win), Brayden Walls, and Josh Beezley who limited Eastern Illinois’ offense late in the game.
With this result, both teams now share second place in conference standings behind SIUE as they prepare for their next matchup.
