ROCHESTER, Michigan – Wright State baseball's
Gus Gregory broke the program's single-game RBI record as the Raiders defeated Oakland 24-12 on Friday afternoon, securing the series win.
Gregory, a sophomore outfielder, drove in 11 runs on five hits, including two doubles and a grand slam. His total ranks second in the nation this season for RBI in a single game and nearly doubled the previous Horizon League record, which was six and shared by multiple players.
Gregory opened scoring for the Raiders with a two-run double up the middle in the first inning.
Braylen Blomquist followed by driving in Gregory with a single to center field. After Gregory reached on a single in the third,
Patrick Fultz extended the lead to 5-0 with a homer to right field. Oakland responded with four runs in the bottom half, cutting the lead to one after three innings.
JP Peltier hit a solo homer over the left field fence in the fifth, but Oakland quickly answered by taking a 7-6 lead with a triple, a sacrifice fly, and a home run.
Wright State responded in the sixth, as Gregory reached seven RBI with a three-run double to center, scoring
Boston Smith,
Will Cook, and
Cam Gilkerson. The Raiders kept rolling in the seventh, adding four runs:
Hunter Warren reached on a fielder's choice to score
Luke Arnold, Smith doubled in Cook, Gregory hit a sacrifice fly to center to plate Warren, and Smith scored on a muffed throw as Peltier reached base. Oakland added one run in the bottom of the seventh, but the Raiders matched it in the eighth when Blomquist scored on a wild pitch.
Much like the series opener, the Raiders finished strong with a 10-run ninth inning. Warren scored on a Gregory single before Gregory later scored on a wild pitch. Fultz added an RBI single up the middle to score Peltier. Wright State hit the 20-run mark as Gilkerson launched a home run to center, bringing in Blomquist and Fultz. Gregory capped the scoring with a bomb to deep center for his first career grand slam.
Oakland added three runs in the bottom of the ninth to make the final score 24-12.
Wright State, now 15-2 in the Horizon League, will go for the series sweep Saturday at 1 p.m.
