UE-Citadel Box Score
UE-UNCA Box Score

CHARLESTON, S.C.--University of Evansville junior right-hander John Foley tossed 7.1 innings of four-hit baseball on Saturday night, and an opportunistic Purple Aces’ offense scored single runs in six-straight innings to help the Purple Aces earn a Saturday split with The Citadel and UNC-Asheville with a 6-3 victory over UNCA at the 2008 Citadel Shootout in Charleston, South Carolina.

After Evansville dropped the first game of the day 13-8 to The Citadel after the Bulldogs jumped on UE freshman hurlers Matthew Page (0-3) and Matt Netherton for 12 runs in the first two innings, Foley (1-0) gave Evansville its best start of the year by scattering three runs on four doubles in 7.1 innings of work while striking out seven.  Junior right-hander J.R. Carbonell then came on to work the final 1.2 innings to record his first save as a Purple Ace. 

Evansville made a victor out of Foley by scoring single runs in every inning from the third to the eighth to rally from an early 1-0 deficit.  UE took its first lead of the game, 2-1, in the fourth inning on an RBI single by junior shortstop Peter Tountas.  After the UNC-Asheville Bulldogs scored a single run off of Foley in the fifth inning to tie the game at 2-2, UE would respond with another run in the fifth thanks to a UNCA error and the Purple Aces would take the lead for good in the sixth inning on an RBI single to right field by sophomore catcher Andy Pascoe.

UE would build a 5-2 lead in the seventh inning, before the Bulldogs would take advantage of an Evansville error to trim the lead to 5-3.  Rookie Nate Smith would provide some extra insurance for Carbonell in the bottom of the eighth inning though, launching his first career home run to left field off of UNCA reliever Ben Buchanan.  Carbonell would then work around a hit-by-pitch to strike out the side in the ninth inning to preserve the UE victory.

Pascoe and freshman outfielder Greg Wallace both had two hits in the nightcap to pace Evansville’s 10-hit attack, while Smith launched his first career home run in his lone at-bat of the game.  In UE’s first game of the day, sophomore Alex Acheson continued his torrid start to the 2008 season with a 3-for-5 performance at the plate, while rookie Sean Loggins also went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

With the Saturday split, Evansville moves its record to 1-9 on the season.  The Purple Aces will wrap up its 11-game road trip on Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m. by battling the Wright State Raiders in the final game of the 2008 Citadel Shootout.