TYLER, TEXAS – It was a complete and total pitcher's duel inside Irwin Field at the UT Tyler Ballpark on Friday night, but the Patriots got the better end of the deal as they take down #2 Angelo State 3-2 thanks to a walkoff home run in the bottom of the 13^th inning from Austin Ochoa.
 
Aaron Munson would get the ball for the Rams, while Dylan Blomquist got the ball for UT Tyler, and the two pitchers went to work, combining for just six hits, no runs, and nine strikeouts over the first six of the contest.
 
Neither side was able to plate a run over those first six innings, and just four runners made their way to third base over that stretch. Both of those instances for #2 Angelo State came in the second and third innings, but Blomquist left them stranded with crucial outs.
 
The Patriots were able to get their first runner to third in the fourth inning after Ethan Bedgood dropped in a double down the right field line to move Jordan Gochenour to third, but they couldn't get the crucial RBI. In the sixth inning, two singles from Gochenour and Ochoa put two men on, and Gochenour moved up on a flyout, but again the Patriots could not put a run on the board.
 
Blomquist would see his night finish at the end of the sixth inning, and he would be met with plenty of cheers and hugs in the dugout after his spectacular outing. That meant that Julio Garcia would come to the mound, and he would face the minimum in the seventh inning to keep the Rams scoreless.
 
The 0-0 affair was finally broken up in the bottom of the seventh inning as Adrian Minjares led off with a double to center field. Lane Hutchinson moved him over to third with a single to left field, and that led to Tommy van de Sanden coming up with a big sacrifice fly to center field to plate the run.
 
That lead would only last a half inning, as the Rams came up with a single and a sacrifice bunt before another single would tie up the game.
 
In the bottom half of the eighth inning, the Patriots came up big again, as Tres Thomas led off with a single before Gochenour followed with a walk. A double play would lead to two outs, but Thomas moved over to third and Bedgood delivered with an RBI single to left field to make it 2-1.
 
Head coach Brent Porche turned to Garrett Arredondo to close out the contest, but leadoff hitter Jacob Guerrero launched a breaking ball deep over the left field wall to tie the game. Arredondo would respond with two strikeouts and a flyout, but the game would head to the bottom of the ninth tied.
 
In the bottom half, the Patriots were unable to get the bats going, and went down in order against reliever Austin Teel. That seemed to spark another pitcher's duel in extra innings, as both Arredondo and Teel would allow no hits until the bottom half of the twelfth inning as Edward Ortiz led off with a double.
 
That double spelled the end of the night for Tell, and the Rams went to their bullpen again. Ortiz would move up to third on a pass ball, but the Patriots could not cash in the run and we moved to the thirteenth inning.
 
Arredondo went back to work again, and worked a walk around a groundout and a flyout. In the midst of facing his fourth batter of the inning, Minjares would throw out a runner attempting to steal second and the Patriots would head to the home half.
 
In that home half of the thirteenth inning, the Patriots just needed one at-bat, as Austin Ochoa drilled a pitch high and deep over the left field fence for a home run and the walk off victory.
 
Dylan Blomquist went six full innings while allowing no runs and striking out four batters and scattering two hits. Julio Garcia went two innings and allowed one run off of two hits.
 
The win goes to Garrett Arredondo, who allowed just the one hit and one run over five innings of work and striking out four.
 
Austin Ochoa went 2-6 on the night with one huge RBI and one run scored. Ethan Bedgood joined Ochoa in the multi-hit category as he went 3-4 with one RBI.
 
The Patriots will head right back out to take on #2 Angelo State tomorrow afternoon in a doubleheader that is set to begin at 3 p.m. inside Irwin Field at the UT Tyler Ballpark.