Cardinals Power Past Marshall on Tuesday

Tuesday, March 10

Louisville, Ky.

3:00 PM

University of Louisville

11-5

Marshall

8-7

Marshall

Louisville

Photo by: Taris Smith | Louisville Athletics

March 10, 2026 | Baseball

Box Score PDF Box Score Dan McDonnell Postgame Video Kade Elam Postgame Video Zion Rose Postgame Video Ben Slanker Postgame Video

By: Stephen Williams

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville baseball team launched four home runs and cruised to a 16-5 victory in seven innings over Marshall on Tuesday afternoon at Jim Patterson Stadium.

Louisville (11-5) has now won four straight, three via the mercy rule.

Despite the final score, it was Marshall (8-7) that scored first on Tuesday. The Thundering Herd took advantage of a Louisville miscue in the outfield and pushed three runs across in the second.

The Cardinals would answer quick though. A walk and a hit by pitch put a pair of runners on and Ben Slanker tied the game with one swing, sending a towering shot over the trees in right-centerfield.

Kade Elam followed it up with a homer of his own three pitches later for his first career homer and the second back-to-back of the season for the Cards.

Nicholas Ballard worked a perfect top half of the third and the offense went right back to work. Two singles and another HBP loaded up the bases and Slanker promptly unloaded them for the second straight inning. The junior went the other way for his second long ball of the day to give him seven driven in through the first three innings.

After the Herd plated a run in the fourth, Louisville had another big swing in the bottom half. The first two runners of the inning reached and Tague Davis laced a line drive over the wall in right field to make it an 11-4 game. It was the fourth straight game with a long ball for the sophomore, who has nine on the year.

Playing in his first game of the season, Zion Rose doubled home a pair in the fifth to add to the lead. Slanker, Alex Alicea and Lucas Moore all tallied RBIs in the sixth to push the Cards across the mercy-rule threshold.

In addition to hitting his first career homer, Elam finished the day 4-for-4 with three runs scored. Slanker was 2-for-3 with the two homers and a career-high eight RBIs. It was the most RBIs in a game by a Louisville player since Alex Binelas against Alabama A&M on April 26, 2019.

Rose tallied a pair of doubles and drove in two in his first action of the spring. Alicea, Moore and Davis added two hits apiece as well.

Ballard (1-0) earned his first collegiate victory with just a single run allowed over two innings of relief work. Ty Starke and Jack Brown turned in scoreless outings as well.

Louisville and Marshall will play again on Wednesday for Elementary School Day at Jim Patterson Stadium. First pitch of the game has been moved up an hour to 10 a.m. ET.

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