DAYTON – The Wright State baseball team fell to the Air Force Academy 9-4 on Tuesday evening. The Raiders will stay at Nischwitz Stadium, taking on Youngstown State for a three-game series from Friday, March 28, to Sunday, March 30. Game one will stream on ESPN+ while all three games will have live stats provided.
The Raiders (11-11) finished with four runs on five hits with six walks against their nine strikeouts.
Luke Arnold and
Cam Gilkerson each recorded two hits, while
Hunter Warren had one.
Patrick Fultz led the team with three walks, while
Braylen Blomquist,
Conlan Daniel, and
Boston Smith drew a walk apiece.
WSU put three runners on in the first, with Warren reaching first on a single to left center. Fultz followed, drawing a walk, and
JP Peltier a hit by pitch. Arnold reached on a walk in the second, followed by Smith on a walk.
The Falcons struck first, scoring three runs in the first two innings—a sacrifice fly in the first and a two-RBI double in the second.
WSU tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the third. Fultz drew a walk and advanced to second on a failed pickoff attempt. Gilkerson put a single up the middle to move Fultz to third before Manley loaded the bases on a hit by pitch. Daniel was walked to put the first Raider run on the board, making it 3-1. Blomquist reached on a fielder's choice, allowing Gilkerson to score while Daniel was forced out at second. In the same play, a shortstop error allowed Blomquist to move to second and Manley to score, unearned, tying the game at three.
The Falcons reacted quickly, adding two runs in the fourth, first scoring on a groundout to second. A runner on first was caught stealing for the third out of the inning, but not before the Falcons added another run to extend their lead to 5-3. Air Force extended its lead to 7-3 in the sixth, capitalizing on two throwing errors.
The Raiders added their final run of the night in the bottom of the sixth, as Blomquist drew a walk, advancing to third on an Arnold single before scoring on a Smith sacrifice fly, 7-4. After a scoreless seventh, the Falcons capped the scoring with a two-RBI double down the left-field line, ending the night 9-4.
The Wright State pitching staff allowed seven earned runs on nine hits with eight walks and 13 strikeouts. Freshman right-hander
Malachi Paplanus recorded a team-best five strikeouts in two innings on the mound.
Parker Thomas (0-1) was charged with the loss, allowing two runs on two hits. Thomas walked no batters while striking out one in 0.2 innings of work.
Air Force (8-16) finished with nine runs on nine hits with eight walks and 13 strikeouts. T.J. Oster led the team with three hits, including one double and a triple. Easton Miller (1-4) earned the win after pitching 2.2 innings, allowing one run on one hit with two walks and three strikeouts.
