The Colonels closed their 2009 campaign with a 27-24 mark, finishing tied for sixth place in the Ohio Valley Conference with a 10-13 record.

The Panthers will open OVC Tournament play at 6:30 p.m. Thursday evening, taking on Southeast Missouri, Tennessee Tech or Jacksonville State. The opponent will be determined by opening-round results. If JSU were to win Wednesday, EIU would play the sixth-seeded Gamecocks. If JSU loses to Morehead State Wednesday night, the Panthers would play the winner of the Southeast Missouri-Tennessee Tech game.

Tyler Kehrer (5-3) pitched well through 6 1/3 innings, giving up four runs (three earned) while striking out seven. Richie Derbak closed out the contest, working 2 2/3 innings of one-run ball for his seventh save of the year. He struck out five of the 12 batters he faced, including each of the two through five hitters in the EKU lineup over the last two innings.

 

“This may have been Kehrer's best game,” EIU head coach Jim Schmitz said. “This is an explosive team with really good running and they didn't do anything. I was really surprised; he must have done a nice job of holding the runners.”

 

“The second thing was we stayed patient. We're probably going to see [more] lefties and guys that throw low velocity. It's hard to do that, but we told them before the game to stay patient. We made one adjustment and looked a certain way, and that's where we got the big hits. Guys are listening when it comes to that. EKU's fighting to get in [the OVC Tournament] and had a chance there, but we added on. I'm proud of the guys on senior day to go out there and do it again.”

Tokarz hit a three-run homer in the fifth and finished with a career-high five RBIs. Zach Borenstein got EIU on the board with a bases-loaded, two-run single in front of Tokarz.

The Panthers scored all of their five eighth-innings runs with two outs. Tokarz and Kreke both knocked in a pair of runs with a hit in their final home at-bat, as EIU blew the game open. But it was Lindquist's solo homer that initially extended the team's one-run lead entering the inning.

 

EKU starter Greg Terry (2-2) kept the Panthers off balance through the first four innings. But Alex Gee singled to open the fifth and the bottom third of the order set the stage for the six-run rally.

 

Needing a win to extend it season and trailing 6-1 entering the seventh, EKU got back in the game with a four-run rally. Jayson Langfels connected for a three-run homer to chase Kehrer. Jacob Daniel later scored on a passed ball, but Derbak got Richie Rodriguez to ground out with runners on first and second.

 

A dropped third strike with outs in the eighth accounted for the Colonels' only base runner in the final two innings.

 

With Gee and Lindquist on base in the fifth, Curt Restko advanced both runners with his team-leading 12th sacrifice bunt of the season. Gerik Wallsten then drew the first of his three walks to load the bases. Borenstein delivered EIU's first clutch hit of the day, singling threw the left side to plate a pair. Tokarz followed with a soaring homer to straightaway center field. Kreke crushed a solo shot off the scoreboard in left later in the inning.

 

Lindquist also homered to center after battling back from a 1-2 count in the eighth. Restko kept the inning alive with a double. EKU then changed pitchers four times for each of the next four hitters that came to the plate.

 

Restko and Wallsten both scored on Tokarz's double to left center. Borenstein and Tokarz came around on a single by Kreke that caromed off of the pitcher's glove and into left field.

With the victory, the Panthers lost only one weekend series in all of 2009. EIU could tie the program's single-season wins record (37) with just one victory at the OVC Tournament. All-Conference honors will be announced Tuesday evening at the annual league banquet in Paducah, Ky.

More Info: Contact Ben Turner, Asst. SID