Hix lifts YSU with ninth-inning sacrifice fly

Staff report

NILES

Kevin Hix’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the Youngstown State baseball team to a 9-8 victory over UIC on Friday at Eastwood Field in front of more than 3,600 fans from area schools and organizations.

The Penguins (11-31, 5-13 Horizon League) have now won five of their last seven home games. Hix delivered the second walk-off victory in the last four contests at Eastwood Field.

Brent Gillespie started the ninth with a leadoff double, and Hix’s sacrifice fly plated pinch-runner Kurt Laver.

Gillespie had three of YSU’s 12 hits. He scored twice and drove in two runs. Phil Lipari also had three hits, and Hix and Jake Ross had two apiece. Tyler Detmer had three of UIC’s 13 hits.

UIC (22-21, 15-10) took a 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly in the first inning, but the Penguins jumped on Flames starter Tomas Michelson for five runs in the bottom of the inning. After Michelson struck out Alex Larivee, the next seven Penguins batters reached. Five different players had RBIs in the inning, and the Penguins got some help on Michelson’s errant throw to second base on a bunt. Starting with Shane Willoughby’s sacrifice fly that plated the fifth run of the inning, Michelson retired 11 straight batters to allow his team to climb back into the game.

The Flames started to chip away with a run in the second and third innings and another in the fifth to trail just 5-4. Lipari stopped Michelson’s run of 11 straight outs with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the fifth, and Matt Sullivan followed with an RBI double to right center. Gillespie singled in Sullivan, and Ross plated Gillespie with a two-out infield single to give YSU an 8-4 lead.

UIC got right back in the game two innings later when a walk and three extra-base hits led to three runs.

Game two of the three-game series is set for 2 p.m. today