CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri right-hander Nathan Mertens tossed a complete game, limiting SIUE baseball to just four hits and the Redhawks downed the Cougars 10-3 Friday at Capaha Field.
With the win, SEMO moved into a tie with SIUE at 11-5 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Both teams trail Little Rock in the league. It is the first time this year that SIUE has fallen out of first place in the league.
The Cougars fell to 22-20 overall. The Redhawks improved to 30-12.
Mertens improved to 4-2 with the complete game win. He struck out eight and did not walk a batter.
A Mack Mitchell home run in the second inning put the Cougars on top 1-0, but the lead was short-lived.
Josiah Hall tied the game with a home run for SEMO with one out in the fourth inning. The Redhawks took the lead with an unearned run coming on a groundout later in the inning.
SEMO hit two more home runs in the fifth, including one from Hall, who connected on a grand slam to push the lead out to 7-1.
SIUE starter Tim Teixeira worked 5.1 innings allowing X runs on eight hits. He walked one and struck out four. Joseph Martin inherited two runners with one out in the fifth and struck out both hitters he faced to stand both runners.
The Redhawks extended the lead again in the seventh inning against SIUE reliever Kyle Rossy, who failed to record an out in the inning. Noah Johnson struck out two to get out of the inning. SEMO added a run in the eighth inning.
Ryan Niedzwiedz blasted his league-leading 18th home run of the season, a two-run shot in the ninth, for the 10-3 final. The long ball was the 37th career homer for Niedzwiedz, who is already the all-time home run leader for the Cougars.
SEMO outhit SIUE 10-4 in the contest.
