Cooper Casteel | Photo: Phoebe Berkey, TTU Baseball
Cooper Casteel | Photo: Phoebe Berkey, TTU Baseball
February 20, 2026

Golden Eagles Ride Lee’s Homer, Casteel’s Strong Start to Second Straight Win

Tennessee Tech baseball won its second straight game Thursday afternoon, using an early offensive surge and a dominant start on the mound to defeat Ohio 8-3 at Bush Stadium.

Box Score Preview

By Jeff Bowe, TTU Athletics Media Relations 

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee Tech baseball won its second straight game Thursday afternoon, using an early offensive surge and a dominant start on the mound to defeat Ohio 8-3 at Bush Stadium.

The Golden Eagles improved to 2-3 overall with their second straight win and the Bobcats fall to 1-3 with the loss. Tech bats got going early with four runs in the first two innings and never trailed. 

GOLDEN BATS

  • Owen Lee hit his second home run of the season, a two-run blast, finishing 2-for-3 with two RBI and two walks. 
  • Connor Crowson walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 1st, starting the scoring. 
    • Crowson finished 1-for-2 with three RBI and two walks. 
    • His three-run double put the Golden Eagles up for good. 
  • Jackson Rooker worked a walk with two outs to add a second run in the 1st inning. 
  • Jorsixt Jimenez went 2-for-2 with three walks and one RBI. 
  • Tech earned a season-high 10 walks and scored a season-high right runs. 

EAGLES' WINGS 

  • Cooper Casteel allowed one run on three hits over a season-long 6.0 innings with a season-high six strikeouts. 
  • Freshman Carson Davis made his second appearance a solid one with four strikeouts over 2.0 innings. 
  • Lefty Micah Summar finished the game with 1.0 inning of relief. 

In the opening inning, Landon Smelser set the tone at the top of the order, and Owen Lee delivered the big swing. Lee launched his second home run of the season in the first inning — a one-out shot to left that plated two runs and gave the Golden Eagles a 2-0 advantage.

Tech kept the pressure on in the second. The Golden Eagles loaded the bases with disciplined at-bats, drawing multiple walks, before pushing across two more runs to extend the lead to 4-0.

After Ohio trimmed the deficit to 4-1 in the fourth, Tech responded again. Nash Crowell and Jorsixt Jimenez helped manufacture a run in the bottom half of the inning to make it 5-1.

The decisive blow came in the sixth. With traffic on the bases, Connor Crowson ripped a bases-clearing double to bring home three runs and stretch the margin to 8-1, effectively putting the game out of reach.

On the mound, Cooper Casteel delivered his strongest outing of the young season. The right-hander earned the win after tossing a season-long 6.0 innings, allowing just one run on three hits. He struck out a season-high six batters while working around three walks and keeping Ohio off balance throughout his 94-pitch effort.

Carson Davis followed with two solid innings out of the bullpen, striking out four, and Micah Summar closed the door in the ninth to secure the victory.

Lee finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs and three runs scored, reaching base four times. Smelser added two hits and two runs from the leadoff spot as Tech outhit Ohio 10-7 and drew 10 walks in a patient offensive performance.

The Golden Eagles capitalized on their opportunities early and backed it with steady pitching and clean defense, committing no errors on the afternoon.

NEXT UP
 With the win, Tennessee Tech secured its second consecutive victory and will look to carry the momentum into a Saturday doubleheader against Ohio starting at 12 p.m. CT. 

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