NORMAL, Ill. - Austin Peay's offense continued to have difficulty putting runs on the board and lost a 9-2 in the series finale to Illinois State, Saturday afternoon, at Duffy Bass Field.

Austin Peay (9-9) had just seven hits in the day's second game and was only able to string multiple hits together in one inning. The Govs second-inning run came courtesy third baseman Greg Bachman's RBI double. Austin Peay pieced together three straight singles in the fourth and scored it's the second run on designated hitter Tyler Childress' fielder's choice.

Illinois State (13-6) rapped out 11 hits in the contest, including nine off Austin Peay starter Zach Toney. Right fielder Kevin Tokarski had a two-run single in the second to give the Redbirds a 2-0 lead. Second baseman Brandon Huff added a two-run single in the third followed by a Tokarski RBI single to push the lead to 5-1 and ISU would not look back.

Toney (1-2) suffered his second straight loss, allowing six runs over 4.2 innings.  Right fielder Rolando Gautier extended his hit streak to 17 games with a fourth-inning single, finishing the game 1-for-4. Bachman led the offense with a 2-for-4, one RBI outing.

Brad Sorkin (3-1) picked up the victory, limiting the Govs to two runs on six hits over eight innings. Tokarski ended the game 3-for-5 with three RBI. First baseman Zach Amrein also had three hits, including a three-run home run in the eighth.

Austin Peay continues its seven-game road trip with a 6 p.m., Wednesday contest at Western Kentucky.

-AP-