Cougars Still Looking for First Win

SIUE baseball dropped the opener of a three-game series Friday, falling 4-0 to Memphis at FedExPark.

SIUE (0-4) got strong outings from all three pitchers.

The day started with six innings from starter Connor Buenger (0-1). Buenger allowed all four runs on eight hits. He did not walk a batter, nor did he strike out a batter.

"He threw well," SIUE Head Coach Tony Stoecklin said. "He had good stuff today."

Ryan Agnitsch and Brandon Tatum each threw a scoreless inning in relief. Agnitsch allowed a single hit, while Tatum tossed a perfect ninth eighth inning with a strikeout.

"They each did a good job," Stoecklin said of his relievers. "(Agnitsch) attacked the hitters which led to a quick inning. Tatum did the same."

Memphis (2-2) picked up all the offense it would need in the second inning when Tigers' designated hitter Andy Bowman hit a solo home run to right field. Memphis added a second run in the third inning thanks to an RBI-double from third baseman Zach Schritenal.

The Tigers scored twice on three hits in the sixth inning for the final margin.

Colton Hathcock (1-0) started and tossed seven scoreless innings for Memphis. He struck out six and walked one. Drew Crosby and Nolan Blackwood each threw a scoreless inning of relief.

The Cougars' best scoring chance came in the third inning. Aaron Jackson led off the inning with a single. Logan Andersen followed a base hit and SIUE had runners on the corners with nobody out. Three consecutive strikeouts ended the SIUE threat.

"He was really good," Stoecklin said of Hathcock. "By the same token we had opportunities to score. I think we tried to do too much with runners in scoring position.

Alec Skender, Kailer Smith and Brock Wiemer had the only other hits for SIUE, which finished with just five hits for the game.

The series continues Saturday with a 2 p.m. first pitch.

"As long as we stay within our approach at the plate we'll see better results," Stoecklin said.