Western Kentucky beat Middle Tennessee 9-5 in game one of a Conference USA baseball series on Thursday night at Nick Denes Field.

Down 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth inning, the No. 20 Hilltoppers rallied to score five runs in the frame. Kyle Hayes tied the game at 5-all with a solo homer before Thomas Marsala put WKU in front with a solo shot of his own just a couple of at-bats later. Joe Siervo tacked on a pair with a two-RBI single and later scored on a wild pitch that gave the Tops a four-run advantage going into the ninth.

WKU improved to 32-6 overall and 10-3 in CUSA, and 134-119-2 all-time against Middle Tennessee (17-21, 3-10 CUSA).

“The thing is, we’ve been in every single game this whole year,” WKU coach Marc Rardin said in a news release. “This entire year, we’re in every game and that’s kind of crazy to say because we only have six losses. I was just trying to tell them how dangerous they are, whether we’re playing a Vanderbilt or a Louisville or Middle Tennessee. They come in here excited. We knew it was going to be a dog fight.

“With that being said, it’s our overall record and national attention that we start getting. It’s the new WKU that people are playing. All of these kids don’t know about what WKU was four years ago. All they know is what WKU is right now.”

Middle Tennessee scored first with a two-run home run in the first inning.

The Blue Raiders used a fielder’s choice to score another in the second to pad their lead to 3-0.

WKU’s Austin Haller used a three-RBI double to tie the game in the second inning, 3-all.

MTSU retook the lead with an RBI double in the fifth.

An RBI triple from Hayes knotted the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the frame.

Middle Tennessee doubled to left center to go back in front 5-4 in the sixth.

Five runs scored for WKU in the eighth. A pair of solo homers from Hayes and Marsala gave the Tops their first lead of the game before Siervo added insurance with a two-run single. He later scored on a wild pitch to put the final run on the board and make the final tally 9-5.

The Hilltoppers have won three of the last four against the Blue Raiders dating back to last season’s series win in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

This is the first time the Hilltoppers have started 23-0 at home in program history. Twenty-three of the Tops’ 32 wins have come at Nick Denes Field.

Jack Bennett got the starting nod on the mound. The right-hander tossed two innings and allowed three runs (two earned) on two hits.

Patrick Morris, Lucas Hartman and Cal Higgins saw action out of the bullpen. Morris worked two shutout frames and struck out four batters while surrendering just one hit. Hartman conceded two runs (one earned) on five hits in four innings while striking out five. He earned his fourth win of the season to improve to a perfect 4-0. Higgins tossed a scoreless frame and struck out one in the ninth to secure the win.

WKU scored nine runs on 13 hits and four walks with eight RBIs.

Six Hilltoppers totaled multi-hit performances, led by Haller in a 2-for-3 outing with a double, three RBIs, a run scored and a walk.

Hayes had a home run, a triple, two RBIs, two runs scored and a walk in a 2-for-3 night. Siervo was 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored. Marsala went 2-for-4 with a home run, an RBI and a run scored.

The Tops’ Carlos Vasquez and Ryan Wideman each went 2-for-5 with Vasquez adding a run.

WKU and Middle Tennessee will continue the series Friday afternoon at Nick Denes Field. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.