Posted: Saturday, March 6, 2010 7:56 pm

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - Chad Edwards' first start didn't go as planned as Middle Tennessee fell to Jacksonville State 9-6 on Sunday.

"Jacksonville was the better team," said Coach Steve Peterson. "They outplayed us, and deserved to win the series."

Edwards, who had a start wiped away due to a rainout at Memphis earlier this season, allowed eight runs on seven hits and two walks over four and one third innings. Eric Gilley gave up two runs in an inning of relief, and Kevin Whittaker pitched the final two and two thirds for the Blue Raiders, striking out four.

Zach Hudson starred offensively for Middle Tennessee (7-3), going 3-5 with a home run and two runs batted in. After missing Saturday's game due to injury, Tyler Burnett homered in his second straight game while going 1-5 at the plate with two RBI. Ryan Ford went 2-3 and scored a run and an RBI. Justin Guidry also went 2-3 with a run. Bryce Brentz was 2-5 on the day and scored a run.

Middle Tennessee struck for two runs in the top of the second. Following a Miller out, Justin Guidry singled and reached third on double by Robertson. A squeeze play by Ford brought Guidry for the first score of the game. Burnett hit into a fielder's choice to score Robertson and put Middle Tennessee up 2-0.

Jacksonville State (4-7) took the lead with a five-run frame in the bottom half of the second. Jake Sharrock led off the inning with a double, and Daniel Adamson followed him up with a home run to center. A walk, infield single and a batter getting hit by pitch loaded the bases with one out for Bert Smith, who hit into a fielder's choice to score Jay Davis. Another walk loaded the bases again, and Andrew Edge singled to score both Blake Seguin and Smith.

JSU would tack on two more runs in the fifth. Edge started off with a double, and a one out triple by Adamson that narrowly got by a diving Brentz in center scored Edge and prompted a pitching change. Hunter Dawson entered the game for the Blue Raiders, and gave up a single to Sam Eberle to put the Gamecocks up 7-2. Eric Gilley took over relief duties and recorded the final two outs.

Middle Tennessee cut the deficit to two in the top half of the sixth. Drew Robertson led the inning off with a walk, but was picked off. Ford followed him up with a hit, and after an out by Burnett, Hudson homered to left. Brentz reached second when Sharrock dropped a fly ball in right field. A throwing error by Smith allowed Brentz to score the final run of the frame.

The Gamecocks answered with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. A double by Cunningham was followed up by a single by Smith to score JSU's first run. Smith stole second and a groundout by Leach advanced him to third to chase Gilley from the game. Kevin Whittaker came in for the Blue Raiders, and a wild pitch allowed Smith to score. Whittaker struck out the final two batters of the inning.

A lead-off home run by Burnett in the eighth brought the deficit back to three, 6-9.

The Blue Raiders were outhit for the second consecutive day 12-11. Each team committed two errors.

Middle Tennessee will end its six-game road swing on Tuesday at Belmont. First pitch at Shelby Park is slated for 1 p.m.
•••

Golf team finishes second in USH Invitational

DADE CITY, Fla. – Middle Tennessee shot a 5-under par 283 in the final round of the USF Invitational to finish second in the 23-team field on Sunday. The Blue Raiders registered a 54-hole score of 857 on the Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club Course (par 72, 7153 yards).

The 32nd ranked Blue Raiders finished five shots behind Florida Southern who is ranked 12th nationally in Division II and three shots ahead of No. 22 North Florida. South Alabama placed fourth, while Xavier rounded out the top five.

"We are getting better with each round and that is encouraging," said Head Coach Whit Turnbow. "Everybody has shown that they can go low in pressure situations but we just have to put it all together at the same time. I like the direction we are heading."

Sophomore Brad Simons was the story of the day and the tournament as the Mountain Home, Ark., native recorded his best career finish by tying for 11th with a 214. Simons, who had seven birdies, registered a personal-best round on Sunday with a 67 which equaled the second-best round of the day.

"Brad had a great tournament and he deserves it because of all the hard work he has put in," said Turnbow.

Also turning up his play on Sunday was sophomore Hunter Green. The Evansville, Tenn., product fired a 68 in the final round to tie Simons for 11th. Green, who birdied all four par 5s Sunday, finished the tournament with a 214.

Seniors Kent Bulle and Craig Smith both tied for 33rd with scores of 216. Bulle had a 74 in the final round while Smith added a 77.

Jason Millard rounded out the Blue Raider scoring by tying for 41st with a 222.

The Blue Raiders will be back in action on March 15 at the Rio Pinar Invitational in Orlando, Fla.


TEAM SCORES

1 Florida Southern -12 F -5 288 281 283 852

2 Middle Tennessee -7 F -5 288 286 283 857

3 North Florida, U. of -4 F -3 286 289 285 860

4 South Alabama, U. of E F +1 294 281 289 864

5 Xavier University +1 F +2 291 284 290 865

T6 Nebraska, U. of +5 F +4 297 280 292 869

T6 Campbell University +5 F E 288 293 288 869

8 Eastern Michigan U. +10 F +4 291 291 292 874

T9 Arkansas State U. +11 F +8 289 290 296 875

T9 Troy Univ. +11 F -3 293 297 285 875

11 Louisville, U. of +13 F +10 294 285 298 877

12 Jacksonville St. +14 F +4 290 296 292 878

T13 Missouri State +16 F -4 296 300 284 880

T13 So. Florida, U. of +16 F +8 291 293 296 880

15 Villanova University +27 F +6 294 303 294 891

16 Florida Atlantic U. +32 F +8 295 305 296 896

T17 De Paul University +36 F +18 298 296 306 900

T17 Austin Peay State U. +36 F +1 302 309 289 900

T19 Columbus St. U. +37 F +24 297 292 312 901

T19 Marquette University +37 F +13 297 303 301 901

21 Rhode Island, U. of +38 F +7 302 305 295 902

22 Cincinnati, U. of +46 F +21 300 301 309 910

23 Marshall University +57 F +16 315 302 304 921


MT SCORES

T11 Hunter Green (3) 72 74 68 214

T11 Brad Simons (4) 71 76 67 214

T33 Kent Bulle (1) 76 68 74 218

T33 Craig Smith (2) 72 69 77 218

T41 Jason Millard (5) 73 75 74 222


•••

Softball team wins behind freshman hurler

ATHENS, Ga. - Middle Tennessee's Janele Robinson threw 5.1 innings of work en route to a Blue Raider 6-4 victory over Belmont as the team improved 4-7 on the season as the Bruins dropped to 1-11.

In victory, the Blue Raider scored six runs on three hits and four errors. Belmont tallied four run off of sevens and five errors.

Robinson struck out three Bruin hitters while allowing five hits and two runs, zero earned. Her record would maintain at 1-0 as her season ERA dropped to ¬4.97.

Middle Tennessee struck first in the second as Kaycee Popham came home on a wild pitch from Belmont hurler Ashley Byers. The Blue Raiders had loaded the bases to that point from a Popham walk, Jessi Couch reach on error and Kandra Singleton hit by pitch. Byers managed to induce a ground out ending the frame allowing only one scored run.

In the fourth, Robinson worked through a jam with Belmont runners at second and third and one out. The rookie receive excellent defensive support on two great catches from outfielder Caitlin McLure and Singleton at second to kill the rally.

"As a pitcher you have to be able to depend on your defense," said Robinson. "I want to go out and strikeout as many batters as I can, but this is a team game and I need their help to do well."

Byers took a no-hitter into the top of the fourth before freshman Kristi Marquez would end hopes by driving a ball to leftfield for a hit. Couch reached on a fielder's choice with Marquez advancing on a throwing error. Singleton would walk, before Brittney Banania notched her sixth RBI of the season upon reaching on a throwing error. Couch would also score on the play, unearned. Banania leads the squad with in RBIs.

Robinson would find trouble again in the fifth with the threatening Bruins leading off with two consecutive singles. The freshman maintained composure and put down three of the next four batters without giving up a run.

"You will make mistakes and give up hits. I turn the page when I make mistakes and move on to the next hitter."

The Bruins would find the scoreboard in the sixth after two costly MT errors and Robinson wild pitch would bring two runs home. Lindsey Vander Lugt took the mound in a relief appearance. She could not bandage the bleeding, allowing two more runs and giving Belmont the lead 4-3.

Middle Tennessee found resilience at bat in the sixth with a rally started on a Banania walk to be followed by a McLure bunt single. A Byers' wild pitch would advance both runners and Banania would score. Abel walked and a Natalie Ysais single to third would push home McLure for the lead. An errant Belmont throw on the play scored Abel giving the Blue Raiders a lead 6-4 which they would not relinquish.

Vander Lugt shut the door in the seventh one, two, three en route to her third victory of the year giving her an overall record of 3-5.

The team showed great patience taking seven walks.

Middle Tennessee maintains a decisive series advantage, defeating the Bruins for the 17th time in the 21 meetings between the two schools.

The Blue Raiders will return to action tomorrow as they take on host and top 10 ranked Georgia at 1:30 p.m. Full results and coverage will be available on GoBlueRaiders.com.

•••
Raider tennis team falls to South Alabama

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Blue Raiders battled against South Alabama at the HEB Invitational but were unable to pull out the win falling 4-2.

Play opened with singles as junior John Peers, ranked 39th in the ITA Poll, defeated Romain Bocaert 6-0, 7-6 (5).

"Today was disappointing but unfortunately expected. We had a tough day yesterday and to the guys credit they had a battle last night and won after another opportunity missed against BYU," head coach David McNamara said. "They rebounded well and played hard and won. But they should be disappointed with what happen today. Today was going to be a mental battle, a battle that we lost. We should be disappointed because we are better than what we showed today."

Senior Victor Melo fell to Lucas Viel 0-6, 7-5, 7-5 as South Alabama took control from there.

Freshman Shaun Waters lost his match 6-1, 6-4 to Alexandre Bernard and sophomore Matthew Langley fell 6-4, 6-2 to Dauw Kruger.

Senior Alex McCann battled in his match after winning the first set 7-5 but could not pull out the win losing the next two sets 6-4, 6-2.

Sophomore Richard Cowden rounded out play as he faced Christian Kuehne. Cowden won the first set 6-4 but lost the second 7-5. In the third set, Kuehne was leading 1-0 when he retired the match.

"It is the half way point of the season and there are lessons to be learned. This team can go either of two ways. We can learn from the past and make a commitment to get better or we can keep doing what we are doing and disappointments will turn to frustrations and decisions will have to be made at the end of this season," McNamara said. "The best athletes learn from there mistakes and get better. They realize what does not work and they change. We need to get better!"

The Blue Raiders will be back in action Thursday, March 18 when they travel to Montgomery, Ala., to compete in the Blue Gray Classic.

•••
Women's tennis teams falls to FIU

MIAMI - The Middle Tennessee women's tennis team traveled to south Florida to face its third consecutive Top 50 opponent and could not muster a win in a 5-2 defeat to No. 49 FIU Saturday in Miami. The Blue Raiders scored their two points in singles action, while also picking up one doubles victory.

"We came out making a few too many loose errors at the start of doubles and unfortunately, they are too good of a team to give any freebies to," head coach Alison Ojeda said.

Middle Tennessee (5-3) tallied a win at No. 3 doubles, as newcomers Carla Nava and Yuiri Nomoto handed Maria Spenceley and Maria Jose Vallasciani an 8-4 loss.

"Yuiri and Carla came out extremely focused and determined at the start and maintained that throughout the match. They beat a tandem which had only lost once this season."

The Blue Raiders were then able to claim two singles wins, despite a pair of others going into three sets.

Marietta Bigus defeated Magali Holt at the No. 5 position 7-6 (3), 6-4, while Taylor Coffey won at No. 6 over Vallasciani 6-2, 6-4.

Nava and Nomoto each dropped their opening sets before winning the second and forcing a decisive third to be played. Nava went the distance in the No. 2 spot against Christine Seredni before falling 6-2, 6-7 (3), 10-5.

Nomoto also battled hard in her No. 3 match against Spenceley, but the FIU (7-5) player earned a 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 victory.

"Going into singles, we talked to the girls about laying it all on the line and fighting as if this was the finals of the conference tournament. We did that. We had chances at six out of six singles spots today. Although we lost, we walked away a better team. We look forward to competing Monday."

Middle Tennessee will remain in the Sunshine State and will next travel north on I-95 to face Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Fla., at Noon Monday.

No. 49 FIU 5, Middle Tennessee 2

Singles
No. 1 #87 Liset Brito (FIU) def. Natalie Araya (MT) 6-4, 6-1
No. 2 Christine Seredni (FIU) def. Carla Nava (MT) 6-2, 6-7 (3), 10-5
No. 3 Maria Spenceley (FIU) def. Yuiri Nomoto (MT) 6-2, 4-6, 6-0
No. 4 Priscilla Castillo (FIU) def. Anna Djananova (MT) 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 Marietta Bigus (MT) def. Magali Holt (FIU) 7-6 (3), 6-4
No. 6 Taylor Coffey (MT) def. Maria Jose Vallasciani (FIU) 6-2, 6-4

Doubles
No. 1 Brito/Castillo (FIU) def. Araya/Bigus (MT) 8-0
No. 2 Holt/Seredni (FIU) def. Coffey/Djananova (MT) 8-2
No. 3 Nava/Nomoto (MT) def. Spenceley/Vallasciani (FIU) 8-4

•••
Golf team remains in second in invitational

DADE CITY, Fla. - Middle Tennessee shot a 286 on Saturday to remain in second place at the USF Invitational. The Blue Raiders own a 36-hole score of 574 and are just five strokes back of first place Florida Southern.

"We played solid golf today," said head coach Whit Turnbow. "Kent (Bulle) and Craig (Smith) were awesome all day long. If we have any hopes of winning this tournament, then we have to step it up from the top to the bottom of our lineup tomorrow."

Senior Craig Smith, who had seven birdies on the day, carded a 3-under par 69 to move into a tie for seventh overall. Smith has a 141 total to stand eight shots back of the individual lead.

Fellow senior Kent Bulle made a major move up the leaderboard with a team-best 68 on Saturday that included four straight birdies to begin the back nine. Bulle is tied for 19th overall with a 144.

Hunter Green registered a 74 to tie for 30th overall while Brad Simons had a 76 to fall into a tie for 36th.

Jason Millard, playing in his first tournament of the spring, recorded a 75 and is in a tie for 42nd with a 148.

The Blue Raiders will play the final round beginning Sunday morning at 8 AM.

TEAM SCORES
1 Florida Southern Col -7 F -7 288 281 569
2 Middle Tennessee -2 F -2 288 286 574
T3 North Florida, U. of -1 F +1 286 289 575
T3 South Alabama, U. of -1 F -7 294 281 575
T3 Xavier University -1 F -4 291 284 575
6 Nebraska, U. of +1 F -8 297 280 577
T7 Arkansas State U. +3 F +2 289 290 579
T7 Louisville, U. of +3 F -3 294 285 579
9 Campbell University +5 F +5 288 293 581
10 Eastern Michigan U. +6 F +3 291 291 582
11 So. Florida, U. of +8 F +5 291 293 584
12 Jacksonville St. +10 F +8 290 296 586
13 Columbus St. U. +13 F +4 297 292 589
14 Troy Univ. +14 F +9 293 297 590
15 De Paul University +18 F +8 298 296 594
16 Missouri State +20 F +12 296 300 596
17 Villanova University +21 F +15 294 303 597
T18 Florida Atlantic U. +24 F +17 295 305 600
T18 Marquette University +24 F +15 297 303 600
20 Cincinnati, U. of +25 F +13 300 301 601
21 Rhode Island, U. of +31 F +17 302 305 607
22 Austin Peay State U. +35 F +21 302 309 611
23 Marshall University +41 F +14 315 302 617

MT SCORES
T7 Craig Smith (2) 72 69 141
T19 Kent Bulle (1) 76 68 144
T30 Hunter Green (3) 72 74 146
T36 Brad Simons (4) 71 76 147
T42 Jason Millard (5) 73 75 148