The Creighton Bluejays baseball team continued their strong start to the 2013 season with a series win over the Evansville Purple Aces. This was the first MVC series of the season for the Bluejays, who took two out of three games by scores of 6-1, 1-4, and 6-2. The wins improved the Bluejays record to 12-5 on the season.
On Friday evening the Jays used strong pitching to win in Evansville by a score of 6-1. Freshman Tommy Strunc allowed one run off of six hits while striking out seven through six innings en route to his fourth win, leaving the Bluejays with a 4-1 lead. The bullpen then allowed only one hit through the final three innings, including a three-strikeout ninth inning for sophomore Jake Peter. 5 Bluejay batters had two-hit games, making for a team total of 15 hits, compared to the 7 of the Aces.
Both teams struggled to produce hits on Saturday afternoon, but it would be Evansville who capitalized for four runs off of eight hits to beat the Bluejays. Freshman Reagan Fowler brought in the only run for the Jays during his two-hit game, bringing in Jake Peter on a single in the sixth inning. Senior Nick Musec took the loss for the Jays on the mound, allowing three runs in 5.2 innings pitched.
Strong pitching for the Jays was critical in the series deciding game on Saturday evening. Four pitchers combined to allow only six hits and two runs. It was freshman Matt Warren who earned the win, pitching 3.2 innings and allowing no runs off of three hits. Junior Mike Gerber had a three-hit night at the plate, also scoring two runs in four at-bats. Reagan Fowler also had three hits, driving in two runs in four at-bats.
With his strong performance over the series, Reagan Fowler earned the MVC Player of the Week honors. This was the second straight week in which a Bluejay player won the award, as Jake Peter had the honors the week before. Fowler was 7-for-12 with three RBI during the series against the Aces. He now has eight multi-hit games this season.
“It’s been fun to watch them grow (Peter and Fowler),” Head Coach Ed Servais said, “they’re both very hard working players. It’s good for them that they get acknowledged by the conference for being the best player for the week. It’s good for the program too to get some recognition. I’m very pleased for both Jake and Reagan and I hope they can continue their success. I think we’ll see a few more of our players have opportunities to win that award.
The Bluejays will look to continue their success this season with and home-away-home series against Nebraska Omaha over the weekend. The Mavericks are 5-12 this season. The series opener is Friday at 6 p.m. at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.