SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – UT Tyler baseball fell by a score of 7-0 on Friday to Lubbock Christian to mark the end of their Lone Star Conference Tournament run.
For the second straight season, the Patriots found themselves in the second weekend of the LSC Tournament in just their second year of Division II eligibility.
The Patriots led off the game with a double as
Jordan Gochenour drilled a double to right field. Two batters later,
Austin Ochoa drew a walk to put the Patriots in a dangerous position, but were unable to bring home a run.
Miles Clack would get the ball to start the game, and he worked a quick 1-2-3 inning as he posted a pair of strikeouts in the bottom half of the frame.
In the second inning, the Patriots got it going again with a leadoff single and a walk before the first out of the inning.
Edward Ortiz drew a walk to load the bases, but the Patriots were again unable to push across a run in the second.
The Chaps got on the board with a leadoff homer in the second inning, and then looked threatening with a pair of singles before closing out the inning with a clutch strikeout and a groundout.
Clack would work a scoreless frame in the third, but the Chaps came back in the fourth with their biggest inning of the game. Another leadoff homer doubled the lead to 2-0, but Clack battled with a groundout and a strikeout around a double to get two outs.
The Chaps answered with a walk to get two on, but two straight doubles would plate three big runs to allow a 5-0 lead to mark the end of Clack's day.
Logan Henderson would step in to end the inning after a walk and a strikeout.
Henderson worked a scoreless fifth after the Patriots offense put yet another runner on base but were unable to plate a run. In the sixth, the Chaps would force Henderson from the game after a walk, fielder's choice, and a hit by pitch. The Patriots would then turn to
Garrett Arredondo, who allowed just one run before completing the inning with a 7-2 putout at the plate.
In the top of the seventh, the Patriots again put on a pair of runners with a hit by pitch and a single up the middle, but a ground ball double play would end the threat.
Arredondo worked a scoreless seventh in his frame with a pair of strikeouts, and in the eighth would get a pair of outs before an RBI single from the Chaps extended the lead to 7-0.
In the ninth, the Patriots would go down in order and the Chaps would take the win.
UT Tyler posted seven hits in the game, and put at least two runners on base in four of the nine innings on the day.
Adrian Minjares was the lone Patriot with a pair of hits, as he went 2-for-4 on the day.
Miles Clack picked up just his second loss on the year to fall to 7-2.
The Patriots will now anxiously await the NCAA Selection Show at 10 p.m. CDT on Sunday, May 13 to see if they will make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in the Division II era and the first time since 2018 as a program.
