CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri baseball (30-12, 19-4 OVC) dropped a 4-3 decision to Murray State (22-22, 10-10 OVC) Friday evening at Capaha Field.
 
The Racers scored three runs in the top of the first off Redhawk starter Clay Chandler and the Redhawks never found a lead thereafter. Chandler (4-2) suffered the loss after allowing four runs in six innings on the mound. He fanned six and walked two.
 
Adam Pennington continued his impressive streak out of the pen Friday, pitching three hitless innings in relief.
 
Ryan Dills (3-3) picked up the victory for Murray State. Dills pitched five innings, allowed three runs, on seven hits. He struck out six Redhawks and walked two.
 
Andrew Bramley picked up a save after pitching four hitless innings in relief for the Racers. Bramley also struck out six and walked two.
 
Ramsey Scott gave Murray State a 3-0 lead in the opening frame with a three-run home run to center.
 
The Redhawks loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning and Chris Osborne capitalized on the situation with a bloop single to left, scoring a pair of runs and cutting the Racer lead to one, 3-2.
 
Tyler Lawrence drew a two-out walk, moved up on a base hit by Scott, and scored on a single by Jack Hranec past a diving Chris Caffrey to widening the lead to two, 4-2.
 
The Redhawks got the run back in the bottom of the inning when Caffrey scored on a groundout to short by Hunter Leeper, narrowing the deficit back to one, 4-3.
 
Both pitching staffs settled in and pitched six scoreless innings.
 
Each team scattered seven hits and committed one error.
 
Osborne was the only Redhawk with multiple hits after going 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI.
 
Reed Thompson, Scott, and Hranec each recorded two hits for the Racers.
 
The Redhawks and Racers are scheduled to play the rubber game of the series Saturday at 1 p.m. from Capaha Field.