Niles, Ohio -- The Youngstown State baseball team fell to Wright State in both games of a Horizon League doubleheader on Friday at Eastwood Field. The Raiders outslugged the Penguins for a 20-8 win in game one before earning the series victory with a 12-4 victory in the nightcap.
With a single in game one, Kyle Fossum set a new single-season school record for total bases by increasing his season total to 138. The senior outfielder surpassed Mark Thomas' previous mark of 137, which had stood since 1999. Fossum added his league-leading 19th home run of the season in game two of Friday's twin bill. Tommy Rover accumulated five hits on the day while hitting a home run in each game.
Youngstown State drops to 12-33 overall and 9-14 in Horizon League play while Wright State improves to 29-15 overall and 20-3 in league action.
Game 1 Recap
In a game that featured 10 total home runs, Wright State was able to outslug the Youngstown State baseball team for a 20-8 victory in game one of Friday's doubleheader at Eastwood Field.
The Raiders hit six home runs while the Penguins belted four two-run homers to account for all eight of their runs in the series opener.
Wright State went ahead 3-0 before Cole Smith's two-run homer in the home half of the first inning pulled YSU within a run. The Raiders held leads of 7-2 and 8-4 before the Penguins evened the score at 8-8 with a four-run bottom of the fourth. After Brayden Kuriger hit a two-run home run in the third inning, Eli Brown and Tommy Rover each went deep in the fourth. Wright State went on to score the final 12 runs of the game.
Rover finished the game 3-for-5 with three runs scored while Smith and Caleb Hadley each went 2-for-4.
YSU starter Jacob Gehring allowed five runs on six hits with five strikeouts over 2.1 innings in a no-decision. Braden Gebhardt suffered the loss after surrendering eight runs on nine hits in 3.2 innings out of the bullpen.
The Raiders jumped ahead with three runs in the top of the first inning. Hunter Warren hit a leadoff double, Patrick Fultz reached with a bunt single and Gus Gregory followed with a three-run home run to right center field.
The Penguins cut Wright State's lead to 3-2 with a pair of runs in the home half of the first inning. Rover hit a one-out single before Smith belted a two-out, two-run home run to right field.
Wright State extended its advantage to 7-2 with four runs in the top of the third. Brayden Blomquist hit a one-out triple and scored on a sacrifice fly from Luke Arnold. Will Cook added a three-run home run later in the frame to give the Raiders a five-run edge.
Youngstown State countered with another two-run home run in the bottom half of the third. Rover reached with a two-out single and Kuriger followed with his sixth home run of the season to left center field.
Wright State responded with a single run in the top of the fourth as JP Peltier hit a solo home run to give the visitors an 8-4 lead.
YSU evened the score with a pair of two-run homers in the bottom of the fourth. Eli Brown and Rover each hit two-run blasts in the inning to even the score at 8-8.
The Raiders went back on top 10-8 with solo home runs from Boston Smith and Cam Gilkerson in the top of the fifth. Wright State proceeded to post three runs in the top of the sixth to push its lead to 13-8. Gregory hit a leadoff double, advanced to third on a single from Peltier and scored on an RBI groundout by Smith. Peltier scored on a sacrifice fly from Arnold while Blomquist walked and scored a two-out RBI single by Gilkerson.
Wright State struck for three runs in the top of seventh on a three-run home run by Smith before adding a single tally in the eighth and three runs in the ninth for the final margin.
Wright State starter Griffen Paige was responsible for seven runs on eight hits over 3.2 innings on the mound. J.J. Thompson was awarded the victory after allowing one run on one hit in 1.1 innings of relief. Max Whitesell, Warren Hartzell and Caleb Ehling combined to blank the Penguins over the final four frames.
Game 2 Recap
Wright State scored six runs in the third inning on its way to a 12-4 victory in game two of Friday's Horizon League doubleheader at Eastwood Field.
Kuriger, Smith and Rover each had two hits to pace the Penguins offensively while Fossum and Rover each went yard.
YSU starter Sloan Ulrich allowed six runs on three hits and five walks over two innings in a losing effort. JJ Tylicki was responsible for three runs, only one of them earned, on one hit while matching his career with nine strikeouts over 5.1 innings of relief.
The Raiders struck first with a single run in the top of the second inning. Blomquist was hit by a pitch and scored from third on a sacrifice fly from Gilkerson.
Wright State scored six runs on four hits in the top of the third to extend its lead to 7-0. Gregory and Gilkerson each delivered run-scoring hits for the Raiders while three runs scored on wild pitches during the rally.
Youngstown State got on the scoreboard with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the third. Jack Johnson drew a leadoff walk and Fossum followed with his league-leading 19th home run of the 2025 season.
The Penguins drew within 7-3 in the home half of the fifth as Rover hit a solo blast to left center field.
The Raiders got the single run back in the top of the sixth to lead 8-3. Warren reached on a dropped fly ball and came around to score on a wild pitch. Wright State scored twice in the eighth and once in the ninth on a home run by Smith.
The Guins pushed across a single run in the bottom of the ninth to account for the final margin.
WSU starter Cam Allen permitted three runs on five hits while fanning nine batters over five innings to earn the win while Chet Lax allowed one run over 3.2 innings out of the bullpen.
The Penguins and Raiders are currently scheduled to conclude their three-game series on Sunday. First pitch at Eastwood Field is slated for 1 p.m.
