Zimmerman Walk-Off Gives Eureka Doubleheader Split with Knox

EUREKA, Ill. – After rallying to tie the game with two outs in the sixth, Andrew Zimmerman (Eureka, Ill./Eureka) capped the comeback with a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh to give the Eureka baseball team a 9-8 win over Knox and a doubleheader split on Tuesday afternoon.

GAME 1: Knox 14, Eureka 7

Emilio Villanueva (Houston, Texas/Milby) started on the mound for Eureka and opened the game with a 1-2-3 first inning.

Knox broke through in the second, plating six runs capped by a grand slam to take a 6-0 lead. The Prairie Fire added two more runs in the third to extend the advantage to 8-0.

Eureka got on the board in the bottom of the third when Noah Company (Le Roy, Ill./Le Roy) led off with a triple and scored on a groundout by Jackson Slater (Huntsville, Texas/Huntsville). Griffin Klein (Bowie, Md./Bowie) followed with a walk before Dylan Smith (Farina, Ill./South Central) launched his second home run in as many days to trim the deficit to 8-3.

Brandon Flynn (Chillicothe, Ill./Navarro) kept Knox quiet in the fourth, but Eureka was unable to add to its total. Knox pushed its lead to 9-3 in the fifth before adding four runs in the sixth to make it 13-3.

The Red Devils responded in the bottom half of the sixth. Grant Hackney (Morton, Ill./Morton) started the rally with a single, Camden Smith (Florence, Ala./Florence/Saint Xavier) was hit by a pitch, and Austin Wilkerson (Spring, Texas/Spring) followed with a single to load the bases. Conor Fitzpatrick (North Barrington, Ill./Barrington) grounded into a double play but brought home a run.

Company later drew a walk, stole second, and eventually scored when Gabe Peters (Washington, Ill./Washington Community) singled to drive in two runs and cut the deficit to 13-6.

Knox added another run in the seventh before Eureka answered in the bottom half when Ethan McDonald (Cleveland, Okla./Mannford) walked and Joshua Stanley (Huntsville, Texas/Huntsville) tripled to bring him home. The rally ended there as Knox secured the 14-7 win.

Klein went 1-for-1 with two walks and scored a run, while Company finished 1-for-2 with a walk and two runs scored. Smith and Peters each drove in two runs for Eureka. Flynn allowed just one run over 2.1 innings of relief work.

GAME 2: Eureka 9, Knox 8

Connor Metz (Tinley Park, Ill./Victor J. Andrew) opened game two in dominant fashion, striking out the side in the first inning to keep Knox off the board.

Eureka quickly took the lead in the bottom half. Company singled to start the inning before Hackney launched his second career home run and first of the season to give the Red Devils a 2-0 lead. Josh Frenden (New Port Richey, Fla./River Ridge) later doubled and scored on a Camden Smith single to make it 3-0 after one.

Knox answered with a big second inning, scoring six runs highlighted by its second grand slam of the day to jump ahead 6-3.

Eureka chipped away in the third. Dylan Smith doubled and Hackney followed with another double to score a run. Camden Smith later singled to bring Hackney home and cut the deficit to 6-5.

The Prairie Fire added two runs in the fourth to extend their lead to 8-5, and the score remained there until the sixth.

Nick Grisofe (Murfreesboro, Tenn./Rockvale) sparked the rally with a single before Zimmerman added a two-out single. Company followed with another hit to bring home Grisofe, and Dylan Smith delivered a two-out double to score two runs and tie the game at 8-8.

Trevor Kinder (West Plains, Mo./West Plains) entered in the seventh and worked around a leadoff walk to keep Knox scoreless and give Eureka a chance in the bottom half.

After two quick outs, Ben Perrine (Payson, Ill./Payson Seymour) kept the inning alive with a pinch hit single. Grisofe followed with another single to put runners on the corners, and Peters drew a walk to load the bases. Zimmerman then sent a ground ball through the left side of the infield, bringing home the winning run and sealing a 9-8 walk-off victory.

Zimmerman and Company each recorded three hits at the top of the lineup, while Company also stole two bases. Dylan Smith finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs, and Hackney went 2-for-4 with a double, home run, and three RBIs. Grisofe added two hits and a walk, and Camden Smith drove in two runs.

Metz struck out all six outs he recorded across two innings while allowing six runs, none earned. Nolan Hudson (Spencer, Ind./Edgewood) tossed 2.1 scoreless innings in relief, and Kinder picked up the win after a scoreless seventh.

UP NEXT

Eureka travels to Rock Island, Illinois, for the Augustana Invite this weekend. The Red Devils will face Lawrence and Augustana on Friday before taking on Central on Saturday.