TYLER, TEXAS – It was a dramatic day at Irwin Field, as UT Tyler bounced back from a two run deficit with three clutch runs to take the lead and earn the sweep over #25 West Texas A&M.
The sweep for the Patriots is their second series sweep of the season, and moves them to 7-5 over ranked opponents this season. The sweep also vaults them up into third in the LSC standings, sitting behind Angelo State and St. Edward's.
Brayden Freeman got the ball to start the action for the Patriots today, and he answered the call with three big innings to hold off the Buffs. Freeman in the first inning struck out his first batter, and after giving up a single, induced the ground ball double play to end the inning.
Inning two was a similar story, as he walked his first batter, but got the double play again along with a strikeout to end the inning. In his final inning of work in the third, Freeman got two straight strikeouts to start before walking two straight. He bounced back and got the flyout to end any threat from the Buffs.
His work gave the Patriots the chance to take an early lead, and they did just that with three runs over the first two innings. In that first inning,
Jordan Gochenour led off with a single, while
Kaston Mason was hit by a pitch.
Lane Hutchinson dropped the sacrifice bunt, and
Austin Ochoa and
Ethan Bedgood brought them home with an RBI single and a sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the second,
Carson Cox led off with a single before stealing second and moving to third on an error. He would later score on a wild pitch for a 3-0 Patriots lead.
The Buffs would bounce back in the fourth inning as
A.J. Irvin took over for Freeman. He got two straight outs to start, but a single followed by a double plated the first run of the game before he could end the inning. He would hand the ball over to
Justin Schrader, who worked a 1-2-3 fifth.
In the sixth inning, the Buffs got to Schrader, with a double and a home run to tie the game. That was followed by a double, and after a groundout,
Logan Henderson would come on to pitch. Henderson walked his first batter, and then threw a wild pitch that would allow the run to give the Buffs the lead. He bounced back quickly with two straight lineouts to end the inning.
After a scoreless sixth for the Patriots on offense,
Hayden Collins stepped to the mound for the seventh inning. He allowed a leadoff single, but worked the next two batters into a flyout and a fielder's choice to get two outs. A wild pitch moved the runner to second, and two batters later a single would plate the fifth run for the Buffs and give them a 5-3 lead.
Garrett Arredondo would come on to close out the seventh with a strikeout, and worked a 1-2-3 inning in the eighth that featured him striking out the side.
That seemed to get the offense fired up, as
Dylan Blomquist stepped up for a pinch hit double to right field with one out. A bunt single from
Edward Ortiz followed, and Gochenour delivered an RBI groundout to first. That would pull the Patriots to 5-4, and Mason came through with his own double to right field to drive in Ortiz and plate the tying run.
Bryce Jewell would come on to pinch run for Mason, and Hutchinson stepped into the box in a big spot. He would continue the clutch hitting for the Patriots in the inning, drilling a pitch to center field to drive home Jewell and give the Patriots the lead.
Arredondo went right back out for the ninth, and after walking his first batter, sat the next three hitters down in order to end the threat and the game.
Arredondo got the win in the game after going 2.1 innings and allowing no hits and no runs off of one walk. He struck out four hitters and held back the Buffs to move to 3-0 on the season.
Gochenour, Ochoa, Bedgood, and
Adrian Minjares all collected two hits in the game. Five different Patriots would drive in a run, and five different Patriots scored a run in the game.
UT Tyler now sets their sights on the town of Portales, New Mexico, as they head west for a four game set with Eastern New Mexico. That series is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. CST on Friday afternoon.
