CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri baseball (18-8) won its eighth game in a row Friday evening with a 9-5 win over SIUE (4-18, 2-8 OVC). With the win, Southeast stays perfect in Ohio Valley Conference play at 10-0.
 
Joey Lucchesi (6-1) picked up his league-leading sixth victory Friday. Lucchesi tossed six scoreless innings and allowed just five hits. He struck out a season-low five hitters but only walked two hitters.
 
Jake Busiek picked up his first save as a Redhawk. Busiek entered the game with bases loaded and the tying run at the plate in the eighth inning and worked out of the situation. Busiek finished the game en route to the save.
 
P.J. Schuster (0-4) suffered the loss for SIUE. Schuster, the first of four pitchers used by the Cougars, allowed five runs on four hits in four innings. In total, the Cougar pitching staff walked 13 and hit two Redhawks in the contest.
 
The Redhawks were outhit in the game, 9-7. Trevor Ezell and Chris Osborne led the offense with two hits each. Osborn blasted a home run and picked up a pair of RBI.
 
Ezell jumpstarted the offense in the bottom of the first inning with a double to left field. Ezell was bunted to third by Dan Holst and scored on a sacrifice fly on a lineout to left by Branden Boggetto, putting Southeast ahead 1-0 in the first. Garrett Gandolfo followed with a two-out triple but was stranded.
 
Osborne smashed his team-leading fifth home run to right field in the second inning to widen the Redhawk lead to 2-0.
 
Schuster walked the bases loaded to start the third inning. Ryan Rippee flied out to right field allowing Holst to tag and score. With one out, a routine double play to short was botched, allowing runners to be safe at first and second and allowing the inning to stay alive to score a run on the play. Southeast led 4-0 after three innings.
 
The third sac fly of the game, this time off the bat of Garrett Gandolfo, scored Ezell and widened the lead to 5-0 in the fourth.
 
With the bases loaded and two out in the fifth, Holst was hit by a pitch to drive in the sixth run of the game, 6-0 Southeast.
 
The second bases-loaded hit batsman, this time it's Osborne, plated another run in the sixth. Brian Lees grounded into a double play but a run scored on the play. Andy Lack drove in Chris Caffrey to make it a 9-0 game in favor of Southeast heading to the seventh.
 
SIUE plated four total runs in the top of the seventh inning to significantly cut into the Redhawk lead, 9-4. An error by on a fielder's choice allowed a run to come around and score. A double by Keaton Wright that plated two runs followed by an RBI double by Skyler Geissinger cut the Redhawk lead to five. All four runs were unearned in the inning.
 
The Cougars tacked on another run in the top of the eighth to continue cutting into the lead, 9-5. Busiek entered the game in the inning and inherited bases loaded with two out and the tying run at the plate but was able to work out of the jam and preserve the lead.
 
Gandolfo, Caffrey, and Lack were the other Redhawks to earn hits Friday. Holst and Gandolfo each drew a trio of walks. Holst finished 0-for-0 with a run, and RBI, and three stolen bases. In all, Southeast was a perfect 5-for-5 on the base paths.
 
Jacob Stewart and Wright each had a pair of hits; Wright had two RBI for SIUE.
 
The Redhawks and Cougars will face off in game two of the series Saturday at 2 p.m. from Capaha Park.
 
Saturday's game will be the first free tailgate of the season. Wings Etc. and River Eagle Distributing will be providing free food and beverages at the game.