Vikings Drop Final Game Of Series, 21-3 At Tennessee Tech
    Shaffer, Johnson And Haditsch Combined For Four Hits
    Jason Haditsch went one-for-three at the plate.

    Jason Haditsch went one-for-three at the plate.

    Feb. 28, 2010

    Final Stats

    Contact: Renee Adam

    Cookeville, Tenn. - Only three Vikings were able to record hits, and the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles had three innings with five or more runs to record a 21-3 win over Cleveland State in the final game of the series at Bush Stadium this afternoon.

    "We got off to a slow start, and it continued throughout the entire game," head coach Kevin Kocks said. "One thing we need to work on going into the rest of the season is being able to stay strong through the entire nine innings, and staying focused on the job at hand until the last inning. We have done some good things during this series, and we need to continue to do that and work on improving on the mound."

    The loss drops CSU to 1-5 on the season, while TTU improves to 4-2.

    The Vikings were first on the board, when Kyle Shaffer reached home plate after getting on base with a double to left field. Ryan Franks grounded out to first base and Tyler Wynn reached base on an error to advance Shaffer, putting the Vikings up 1-0.

    Tennessee Tech answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first inning when Tate McMillan and Chad Oberacker scored of a Cassanova Donaldson single, putting the Golden Eagles up 2-1.

    CSU evened the score in the third inning when Alex Johnson singled to right field and advanced to second on a TTU error, then scored after Shaffer was able to single to same area.

    The 2-2 score would only last for an inning, as TTU was able to record a combined 19 runs compared to one Viking run over the next four innings, giving them a commanding 20-3 lead. Five of the six Golden Eagle runs scored in the fourth inning came with no outs on the board, while TTU was able to hang in the fifth inning to score all five with two outs on the board.

     

     

    The final Viking run came in the top of the fifth inning when Jason Haditsch became just the third Viking to record a hit in the game, as he singled up the middle and was able to advance to third off a TTU error. Shaffer drove in his second run of the game, scoring Haditsch, after reaching base on a fielder's choice.

    Shaffer led CSU, going two-for-three at the plate, with one run and two RBI and Johnson went one-for-four with one run and Haditsch went one-for-three with a run.

    Nate Dick started the game on the mound, pitching three innings, allowing six runs and seven hits, striking out one batter.

    Five other Vikings pitchers made appearances in the game, combining for five strike outs.

    CSU returns to the field next weekend when they travel to Richmond, Va. to face VCU in a three game series beginning on Friday (Mar. 5) at 3:00 p.m.