Louisville Snaps Seven-Game Skid, Blasts Northern Kentucky in Final Midweek Matchup

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
NKU	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	3	0	5	5	2
UL	2	0	0	4	2	8	0	2	X	18	13	0

W: Evan Webster (4-2). L: Joey Perkins (1-2)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Playing in their final midweek game of the regular season, the Louisville baseball program was finally able to snap their lengthy skid, eviscerating Northern Kentucky to the tune 18-5 Tuesday at Jim Patterson Stadium.

The Cardinals (30-22) entered the matchup with the Norse (28-23) on a seven-game losing streak, which was their longest since dropping eight straight back in May of 2011. Louisville also moves to a perfect 5-0 against Northern Kentucky since the series between the two was resumed in 2017.

Eddie King Jr. (1-3, 2B, 3 RBI), J.T. Benson (1-2, HR, 3 RBI) and Brandon Anderson (1-5, 2B, 3 RBI, SF) led the offensive onslaught for Louisville, with each driving in a trio of runs. Gavin Kilen (2-4, 2 RBI, 2 BB) and Will Cook (1-1, HR, 2 RBI, BB) also had multi-RBI days, and the Cardinals as a whole drew a season-high 12 walks.

Louisville was the first to crack the scoreboard, with King striking a two-run double in the opening frame. Northern Kentucky wasn't far behind, plating an RBI groundout and RBI single in the third to tie the game, chasing out starting pitcher Tucker Biven (2.1 IP, 1 K, 2 BB, 3 H 2 ER) in the process.

The Cardinals then broke the game wide open through the middle frames, plating 14 unanswered runs in the fourth through sixth innings. Their scoring outburst started with a four-spot in the fourth, with Kilen collecting an RBI single and Benson launching a three-run blast. Cook then followed that up with a two-run homer in the fifth.

Adding insult to injury, Louisville doubled their lead in a single inning by putting up an eight-spot in the sixth. Logan Beard (2-4, 2B, RBI) hit an RBI single, Anderson tallied a two-run double, King was hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded, while Kilen, Jack Payton (1-4, RBI, 2 BB), Ryan McCoy (1-3, RBI, 2 BB) and Isaac Humphrey (0-0, RBI, 3 BB) all drew bases loaded walks.

Additionally, the bullpen rebounded in a big way after some shaky outings in recent games. Following Biven's departure, Evan Webster (2.2 IP, 3 K, 1 H), Alex Galvan (1.0 IP, 1 BB) and Riley Phillips (1.0 IP, 1 K) all produced scoreless outings.

The only hiccups encountered by the bullpen came in the eighth inning, when Patrick Forbes (0.1 IP, 1 K, 4 BB, 1 H, 3 ER) allowed a bases-clearing double. Kade Grundy (1.2 IP, 2 K) came in after Forbes, and limited the damage by getting the latter two outs of the frame.

Louisville added two more runs to their ledger in the bottom of the eighth, with Anderson collecting a sacrifice fly and Noah Smith (1-2, RBI) hitting an RBI single. Cameron Robinson (1.0 IP, 1 K) then came in and closed the game out with a scoreless ninth.

Next up for Louisville, they'll host Florida State for their final series of the regular season. First pitch of game one is slated for Thursday, May 18 at 7:00 p.m. EST, and will be televised on the ACC Network and broadcast on 93.9 The Ville.

(Photo via Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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