All it took was 109 pitches Friday against Austin Peay for junior pitcher Mike Recchia to gain Ohio Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week, the second time in his career.

With those 109 pitches, Recchia pitched 7 1/3 innings of one-hit baseball, giving up no runs and having seven strikeouts.

One weak spot in that game was the five walks Recchia issued, but he pitched out of the jams to preserve the 2-0 win.

Recchia, who turned 21 that day, was more excited for the win instead of the stellar outing or celebrating that night.

“It really doesn’t bother me if I give up one hit or 10 hits as long as we win the game,” Recchia said. “That’s what really matters to me.”

Recchia is ranked the fifth top pitcher in the league, going 3-2 with a 4.61 ERA. He has pitched 41 innings and is second in the league with 43 strikeouts.

Game canceled

Wednesday’s 3 p.m. game with Chicago State was rained out at on the South Side of Chicago.

As of now, Schmitz is talking to Cougars coach Michael Caston to try and reschedule the game later this season. If the game is not made up, it would be Eastern’s first cancelled game in 2010. The Panthers next game is against rival Morehead State (17-14, 1-2 Ohio Valley Conference) 1 p.m. Saturday at Coaches Stadium, the first of a doubleheader.

Holes in bats

Head coach Jim Schmitz team has been cold this season, with his team hitting an OVC low .264, with the second-worst Tennessee Martin batting .286. Also, Eastern’s run production is down significantly from 2009. The Panthers last season were averaging 9.18 runs per game, while this year’s squad is mustering 5.11 runs.

Schmitz has been frustrated with his players leaving guys on base, with 39 stranded the last four games.

“That’s the big thing we harped on during practice (last week),” Schmitz said. “It just happens. (Sophomore leftfielder) Ben Thoma got the big 2 RBI hit in the second game. Same thing. It’s been a really hard year and we’re trying to move on.”

The coach referred to when Austin Peay was leading 2-1 in the third inning of Friday’s second game when Thoma smacked the ball to the outfield to give Eastern a 3-2 edge.

“The whole game and the game before, they were really throwing off speed at me, so I was sitting on a changeup or a slider and he left it over the plate,” Thoma said.

Around the league

Eastern is currently in sixth place in the OVC standings at 2-4 in league play, making them eligible for the OVC baseball championship tournament if it started today despite having a 7-20 record.

Southeast Missouri (18-10) and Jacksonville State (16-12) are both in a first-place tie at 5-1, while Murray State (16-12) is in third at 4-2.

The Redhawks are also first overall in team batting (.357), pitching (5.93 ERA) and second in fielding (.961). Eastern Kentucky leads the OVC with a .962 fielding percentage.

For home runs, Tennessee Tech junior first baseman A.J. Kirby-Jones has bopped 15 homers. Murray State senior first baseman Wes Cunningham and Morehead State senior outfielder J.D. Ashbrook have 13 and 12 dingers, respectively.

Bob Bajek can be reached

at 581-7944 or rtbajek@eiu.edu

Junior Dillon Roark pitches against Illinois College Tuesday afternoon at Coaches Stadium. Roark pitched one inning and threw 10 of his 13 pitches for strikes. (Audrey Sawyer / The Daily Eastern News)

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