Kentucky vs. Morehead State observations

Kentucky scrimmaged against in-state foe Morehead State at Kentucky Proud Park on Sunday.

Photo by Caleb Bowlin of UK Athletics (courtesy of UK Baseball)

The Kentucky baseball team concluded its fall practice schedule with a scrimmage against Morehead State at Kentucky Proud Park on Sunday afternoon. The teams played two seven-inning games, with Kentucky winning 13-2 in the first game and 16-2 in the second game.

Earlier this fall, the Wildcats defeated Wright State 25-8 over the course of 14 innings. In all, Kentucky outscored its fall opponents 54-12 over 28 innings.

“The last time we played outside competition (at Kentucky Proud Park) was our first time going to Omaha,” Kentucky head coach Nick Mingione said after the game. “We actually had a great crowd today. I loved to see it. Super proud of the team. The growth they’ve made over the last 45 days is pretty impressive. I thanked them for all the strides they’ve made.”

Bat Cats Central was on hand for all 14 innings on Sunday. As a reminder, all stats are unofficial and based on my own note keeping. The scrimmage format also meant that a few innings got cut short as the teams agreed to end the inning early. The score could’ve been more lopsided in favor of Kentucky.

Here’s how the Wildcats lined up in game one:

KENTUCKY LINEUP 

1. Luke Lawrence, 2B — 1-4 

2. Will Marcy, CF — 3-4, 3 doubles, HBP 

3. Dylan Koontz, 1B — 1-2, homer, walk, 2 RBI 

4. Patrick Herrera, 3B — 0-2, walk

5. Shaun Montoya, RF — 1-4 

6. Cole Hage, LF — 1-1; 3 RBI, 2 BB, sac fly

7. Tyler Bell, SS — 0-2, HBP, BB, RBI 

8. Ethan Hindle, DH — 1-1, 3 RBI 

9. Eli Small, DH — 1-2; 2 RBI 

10. Devin Burkes, C — did not bat

Extra hitters: 

Khaleel Pratt — 0-0, BB, HBP 

Hayden Mains — 0-1, BB

Aidan Larkin — 1-2, RBI 

Nolan Belcher — 0-2

Kentucky pitchers for game one:

• RHP Scott Rouse – 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K 

• LHP Ethan Walker – 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 K 

• RHP Tristan Hunter – 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 

• LHP Leighton Harris – 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K 

• LHP Logan Grubb – 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 K 

Observations

• Radford transfer Scott Rouse took the mound for game one and tossed three scoreless innings. He struck out five of the 13 batters he faced and allowed just two hits and two walks. It was a sharp performance and one that likely felt like a bounce back since he didn’t have his best stuff against Wright State earlier in the fall. He gave up a couple of earned runs at Prasco Park but held Morehead State off the board on Sunday. He’s firmly in the mix for a weekend rotation spot moving forward.

• Lefthander Ethan Walker is another likely frontrunner for a weekend spot. He had a quick appearance against the Eagles, retiring the side in order with one strikeout. Other than that, Kentucky leaned on freshmen for the final three innings. Tristan Hunter allowed a solo home run to Aubrey Kearns to begin the fourth inning but got out of a bases loaded jam with a nice play by third baseman Patrick Herrera. Herrera fielded the ball near the third base bag, tagged it and tossed it across the infield to first for a double play. Dylan Koontz had a nice stretch on the play.