LEXINGTON, Ky. — Austin Schultz set the tone, Oraj Anu delivered the big blow and the Kentucky baseball team scored a 6-0 victory over Ball State on a cloudless Saturday afternoon at Kentucky Proud Park. It was the second shutout in just eight games for the Wildcats.
Schultz led off the game with a clean single, then stole second and third base before Anu hammered a 418-foot home run to centerfield, giving the Cats (7-1) a 2-0 lead in the first inning that they would never relinquish. Schultz, a junior powder keg at the top of the lineup, stole a career-best three bases, tied his career-high with three hits and wreaked havoc on the Cardinals all afternoon while reaching base four times.
One night after missing several opportunities to put the game away after taking an early lead the Wildcats didn’t wait around on Saturday. Sophomore infielder Ryan Ritter smoked his first career home run in the second inning to extend the lead and the Cats added single runs in the fourth, sixth and seventh innings while keeping constant pressure on the defense.
On the mound, Mason Hazelwood earned his second win in as many starts after working through a bout of early wildness. The senior left-hander allowed just three hits and struck out six in 5.1 innings before giving way to senior right-hander Daniel Harper, who extricated the Cats from a mini-jam in the sixth. Freshman righty Seth Logue pitched the final three innings to earn his first career save, striking out six – including five straight.
