UAB Drops Series With Extra Innings Game Three Loss

Sunday, April 7

Young Memorial Field

12 P.M.

UAB

14-19, 2-10

Old Dominion

18-13, 3-9

Old Dominion

UAB

UAB Drops Series With Extra Innings Game Three Loss

4/7/2019 4:56:00 PM | Baseball

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BIRMINGHAM – The UAB baseball team was unable to get its first Conference USA series win of the season as it fell 9-5 in 11 innings to Old Dominion on Sunday afternoon at Young Memorial Field.

UAB (14-19, 2-10 C-USA) has now dropped seven consecutive C-USA series dating back to last season.

Big inning woes continued for the Blazers as they gave up all nine runs in two innings, combining for three errors in the eighth and 11th inning.

"It's obvious, and these are both easier said than done, but if you are going to win you have to hold a five run lead with six outs to go and we haven't done that multiple times this year, if we hold our leads we are in pretty good shape," head coach Brian Shoop said. "And then the other thing is you have bases loaded and nobody out with the infield in, you have to be able to move the ball and score a run. Again, both of those are easier said than done, but you do those things and everybody is happy and you have a pretty nice record. You don't do those things and everybody is crushed and you don't have good record."

Jess Davis led UAB at the plate, matching his career high in hits with three, while adding a run scored and a RBI. Blake Johnson was the lone other Blazer to record a multi-hit game, knocking a pair of hits, including a double.

Zack Davis and Carter Pharis both finished with one hit each and a pair of RBIs for the three and four hole, respective, hitters.

Tanner Graham was dominant in his 38th career start, tossing 7.0 innings and allowed just five hits with no runs allowed and no walks issued with three strikeouts. The senior threw a combined 10.2 inning this week without allowing a run, dating back to his Tuesday night start at Samford.

Despite taking the loss, Matthew Calvert was equally as good as Graham in his appearance out of the bullpen, throwing 3.0 innings and giving up three runs, just one earned, with a walk and a strikeout.

"I want to say something about Matthew Calvert," Shoop said. "This is the unfairness of baseball scoring. What an incredible weekend, it's like pitcher of the week stuff that he did. He doesn't get a win on Friday because of the way baseball rules are even though he was clearly the most effective and the best guy on the mound. Then he gets punished with the loss today and again he is just a warrior and champion for us. It's a shame really and he should have had two wins and is the MVP of the weekend, he just didn't have enough other stuff go right for that to happen. I don't want to not acknowledge how good he was.

"I don't want to not acknowledge how great Tanner Graham was too. After giving up 14 runs yesterday he came out and shuts them out for seven innings and was just fantastic. Had he not started on Tuesday and was on five days rest and over 100 pitches I would have loved to have kept him out there. At the same time you don't want to hurt someone."

Z. Davis put the Blazers ahead in top of the fourth inning sending a solo home run to right field to give UAB a 1-0 lead.

UAB added what it thought would be enough, tacking on four runs in the top of the fourth inning. Johnson led off the frame with a double followed by a hit by pitch to Christian Waltman. A sac bunt moved the pair into scoring position before J. Davis' singled through the left side to score Johnson. Colton Schultz followed by being walked to load the bases before Z. Davis became the second hit batsman of the inning, scoring Waltman and pushing the Blazers' lead to three. Pharis' lone hit of the day was a two RBI single through the right side that scored J. Davis and Schultz to push the UAB advantage to 5-0.

Old Dominion tied the game in the top of the eighth inning, plating five runs on four hits with the help of a pair of UAB errors to make it a 5-5 contest.

Unable to do anything with a leadoff single to begin the ninth inning, the game went into extra innings for the second time in the series against the Monarchs.

The Blazers threatened in the 10th inning as Schultz led off the frame with a triple to left center. Z. Davis and Pharis were intentionally walked to load the bases with no outs. Ian Ladner struck out swinging for the first out of the inning, followed by a fielder's choice off the bat of Austin Triplett in which the Monarchs got the lead runner at home for the second out. Johnson became the final victim of the inning, grounding out to third base to end the threat and leave the bases loaded in extra innings.

Working out of the bases jacked jam gave Old Dominion momentum going into the top of the 11th inning, scoring four runs on four hits with yet another UAB error to take a four run lead into the home half of the 11th.

J. Davis got a two out single in the 11th inning but a ground out to short off the bat of Schultz ended the game and gave UAB its 19th loss on the season.

UAB returns to the diamond on Tuesday night with a midweek contest at Troy. First pitch between the Blazers and Trojans is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN+ from Riddle Pace Field.

For more information on the UAB baseball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_Baseball) or on Instagram (UAB_Baseball).