Eureka Unable to Hold Leads in Doubleheader Loss to Greenville

EUREKA, Ill. – Despite strong starting pitching in both games, Eureka dropped a doubleheader to Greenville on Tuesday, falling 9-2 in the opener and 4-1 in the nightcap.

GAME 1: Greenville 9, Eureka 2

In the opener, Eureka received a dominant outing on the mound from Ethan McDonald (Cleveland, Okla./Mannford), who tossed six scoreless innings while allowing just four hits and striking out two. The Red Devils broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth when Noah Company (Le Roy, Ill./Le Roy) reached on a single, stole second and third, and scored on an RBI single by Andrew Zimmerman (Eureka, Ill./Eureka) to take a 1-0 lead.

The game shifted in the seventh after Eureka turned to the bullpen, as Greenville plated four runs to take control at 4-1. Eureka answered with a run in the bottom half of the inning, as Zimmerman singled, advanced on a throwing error, stole third, and scored on another error to cut the deficit to 4-2. However, Greenville added a run in the eighth and broke the game open with four more in the ninth to secure the 9-2 win.

Zimmerman led the way offensively, going 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI, a run scored, and two stolen bases. Company also went 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored, and two stolen bases, while Grant Hackney (Morton, Ill./Morton) finished 2-for-3 with a double and a walk.

GAME 2: Greenville 4, Eureka 1

In Game 2, Eureka once again got a strong start on the mound, this time from Brayden Williams (Kansas, Okla./Salina), who held Greenville scoreless through five innings. The Red Devils struck early in the bottom of the first, as Company singled, stole second, and came around to score on a Hackney single and a throwing error to take a 1-0 lead.

Greenville broke through in the sixth, scoring four unearned runs on three hits and two errors to take a 4-1 advantage. Eureka threatened in the bottom half of the inning with runners on the corners following singles from Company and Hackney, but the Red Devils were unable to capitalize.

Eureka's bullpen kept Greenville off the board the rest of the way, highlighted by Kenyon Martin (Galena, Kan./Galena)'s 2.2 innings of hitless relief with two strikeouts, but the offense could not generate a late rally in the 4-1 loss.

Company paced the offense in Game 2, going 3-for-4 with a double, stolen base, and a run scored. Hackney added two hits, while Joshua Stanley (Huntsville, Texas/Huntsville) recorded a double. Williams finished with six innings pitched, allowing four runs (none earned) on four hits with four strikeouts.

UP NEXT

Eureka travels to St. Louis this weekend for a three-game series with Webster. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Saturday, followed by a 3 p.m. finale on Sunday.