The Tulane baseball team secured an 11-6 win over Memphis on March 21 at Greer Field at Turchin Stadium, evening their American Athletic Conference series. The victory brings Tulane’s record to 12-12 overall and 1-1 in conference play, while Memphis falls to 6-15 and also stands at 1-1 in the conference.
This game was important for Tulane as it allowed the team to recover from a previous loss in the series and maintain momentum in conference competition. The win sets up a decisive rubber match between the two teams.
Blaise Wilcenski earned the win for Tulane, pitching 1.1 innings in relief with one run allowed, one hit, one walk, and three strikeouts. Jack Frankel started for Tulane, giving up four runs on seven hits over 4.1 innings. Jake Toporek contributed two innings out of the bullpen with three strikeouts and one run allowed, while Sam Larson closed out the ninth inning without allowing a run.
Offensively, Kaikea Harrison, Tye Wood, and Jason Wachs each drove in three runs for Tulane. Harrison also scored twice and collected two hits plus a walk. Wachs extended his on-base streak to 50 games with a hit and a walk—a career high—while Wood added a hit and a walk as well. Other contributors included Nate Johnson and Matthias Haas with a hit and run each; Trent Liolios walked three times, scored twice, and had a sacrifice bunt; Jack Johnson scored three times along with recording a hit and walk; Hugh Pinkney both scored and drove in a run with two sacrifice bunts.
Memphis took an early lead before Tulane responded with five runs in the second inning using small ball tactics including sacrifice bunts and aggressive baserunning. The Tigers tied the game at five before Tulane regained control with four runs in the sixth inning followed by two more in the seventh. Memphis managed another run late but could not close the gap.
Tulane will face Memphis again on Sunday, March 22 at 1 p.m., aiming to clinch the series.
