TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Grant Magill delivered the two-out, two-run single down the right field line to cap a three-run rally in the bottom of the eighth inning as Indiana State topped Wright State, 6-5, to open the Terre Haute Regional at Bob Warn Field.
No. 1 Indiana State (43-15) trailed throughout a majority of the contest as the Sycamores fell behind early against the No. 4 Raiders (39-22). Wright State took the 5-2 lead after the top of the fifth inning following Gehrig Anglin and Andrew Patrick home runs to silence the 2,353 crowd at The Bob early in the game.
The pro-Sycamore crowd came back to life in the bottom of the sixth on Adam Pottinger’s solo home run and a Zach Davidson’s (4-1) strong performance out of the bullpen kept Indiana State within striking distance. Davidson went a season-high 4.0 innings allowing four hits while striking out five to keep it a 5-3 game heading into the bottom of the eighth.
The Sycamore rally started as Josue Urdaneta connected on the leadoff single through the left side. Two batters later, Mike Sears doubled down the left field line prompting a pitching change. Tristan Haught came in relief and gave up Adam Pottinger’s RBI sacrifice fly scoring Urdaneta to cut the lead down to 5-4.
Keegan Watson and Miguel Rivera both worked the count and drew walks to load the bases. Magill went down 1-2 in the count before connecting on a line drive single down the right field line scoring both Sears and Joe Kido to make it a 6-5 Indiana State lead.
ISU closer Jared Spencer (S, 6) entered the game in the top of the ninth and set the Raiders down in order for his sixth save of the year to close out the Sycamore win.
The Sycamores opened the NCAA Regional with a win for the fourth time in program history and first since 2019 when ISU topped McNeese State at the Nashville Regional.
Mike Sears went 2-for-3 from the plate with a pair of runs scored to lead Indiana State’s 10-hit effort in the game. Pottinger and Magill both drove in a pair of RBIs, while Sears and Randal Diaz both connected on doubles.
Matt Jachec went the first four innings on the mound allowing five hits and five runs (three earned), while striking out four. Davidson posted his sixth five-strikeout of the season to highlight the ISU staff.
Anglin and Luke Arnold both had two-hit games for Wright State in the loss. Patrick scored a pair of runs and added a stolen base to highlight the Raiders’ offense.
Sebastian Gongora went the first 7.1 innings on the mound allowing nine hits and five runs while striking out seven. Haught went the final 0.2 in taking the loss.
How They Scored
Wright State scored two in the top of the second inning to take the early lead as the Raiders struck first on Boston Smith’s two-run double to right center scoring Julian Greenwell and Sammy Sass.
The Sycamores cuts the lead down to 2-1 in the bottom of the second inning as Henry Brown connected on an RBI single to right center scoring Mike Sears.
Wright State made it 4-1 in the top of the third as Gehrig Anglin drilled a one-out, two-run home run over the wall in left field scoring Andrew Patrick.
ISU made it 4-2 in the bottom of the third on Mike Sears’ RBI single to center scoring Randal Diaz.
Patrick put Wright State ahead 5-2 in the top of the fifth inning with a leadoff solo home run over the left field wall.
The Sycamores cut it to 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth on Adam Pottinger’s solo home run over the wall in left center.
Indiana State rallied with three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning as Pottinger connected on a sacrifice fly scoring Josue Urdaneta, before Grant Magill connected on a two-out, two-run single down the right field line scoring Sears and Joe Kido to put the Sycamores ahead 6-5 and provide the final margin.
News & Notes
Indiana State improved to 43-15 overall on the season with the win over Wright State.
ISU also improves to 10-3 all-time over the Raiders and 9-1 against WSU when playing in Terre Haute.
Friday’s win marked just the fourth time in Indiana State history the Sycamores won their first NCAA Regional game and first time since 2019 (McNeese State). Previous first game wins occurred in 1984 (Central Michigan) and 1986 (Michigan).
The Sycamores’ 43 wins equals their win total in the 2019 season and ties for the most in a single season in the Mitch Hannahs coaching era.
Adam Pottinger ran his on-base streak to 34 consecutive games continuing the longest on-base streak in the Mitch Hannahs era. Pottinger went 1-for-3 on the day with a solo home run and an RBI sacrifice fly in the ISU win.
Mike Sears recorded his 17th multi-hit game of the season and 20th of his career in the win after going 2-for-3 from the plate.
Pottinger became the third Sycamore to reach double-digit home runs on the season with his solo shot in the sixth inning joining Sears (19) and Diaz (10).
Zach Davidson continues a spectacular run on the mound as the junior left-hander has not allowed a run dating back to March 31 against UIC. The span covers 10 appearances and 21.1 innings. During the streak, Davidson has posted a 37:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Jared Spencer closed out the game for his sixth save of the season and first since April 16 at Belmont after retiring the side in the top of the ninth.
Indiana State Postgame Press Conference
Up Next
Indiana State will play the winner of No. 2 Iowa/No. 3 North Carolina on Saturday evening with first pitch set for 6 p.m. ET. The game will be carried live on 105.5 The Legend. Television designations have not been determined.