SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – UT Tyler baseball stole game two on Saturday afternoon to ensure a split of the seven inning doubleheader with #17 Angelo State.
GAME ONE
UT Tyler got early run support in game one as their offense erupted for six total runs in the first two innings. In the first inning, it was a two RBI double from
Lane Hutchinson to left center field that plated
Connor Clark and
Ethan Bedgood after they reached on a hit by pitch and a single to right field.
In the second inning, Jordain Ardoin and
Hayden Clearman led off the inning with a single and a walk before Clark picked up an RBI single to plate the first run of the inning. One batter later, Bedgood cleared the bases with a three run blast to left field to give the Patriots a 6-0 lead.
The Patriots gave the ball over to
Nash Villegas to begin the contest, and he worked two straight scoreless innings while allowing just two hits. In the third inning, the Rams would load the bases to lead off the inning, but would only plate one run as Villegas limited the damage.
In the home half of the fourth, Villegas would get a leadoff groundout before allowing a pair of singles. That meant
Miles Clack would jump into the game, and the Rams struck with a three run blast of their own to cut the lead down to 6-4 after four innings.
After a 1-2-3 inning in the fifth from the Patriots offense, the Rams quickly got a one out RBI single to to cut the lead down to 6-5. That brought on
Josh Pelfrey, but the Rams tacked on two more runs before the Patriots defense came up with a clutch relay to gun down the runner stretching out a single.
With the Rams up 7-6 heading into the sixth, the Patriots sensed the moment and answered the bell in a big way. Both Clearman and
Blake LaBuda blasted solo home runs to put the Patriots right back in front by a score of 8-7.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Patriots brought on
Nick Niebur to face the Rams offense. The Rams battled their way back into the game with two singles, a hit by pitch, and a three run blast to take the lead 11-8.
The Rams would tack on 16 total runs in the inning, and pick up a 23-8 win in game one.
Ethan Bedgood,
Lane Hutchinson, and
Blake LaBuda each totaled two hits on the day, while Bedgood finished with three RBI and two runs scored.
GAME TWO
Game two for the Patriots saw
Garrett Arredondo take the mound as they looked to rebound from the game one loss. The Rams picked up an early run with a sacrifice fly, but Arredondo limited the damage to just one run.
Arredondo came right back in the second inning by striking out the side, and he tacked on another strikeout in the third while posting his second straight scoreless inning.
In the home half of the fourth, the Rams tacked on a solo home run, but Arredondo came through with another strong performance to limit the damage to just the one run.
In the fifth inning, the Patriots offense roared to life, as they plated five runs to take a 5-2 lead. That inning started with a
Connor Clark two out single, and
Ethan Bedgood connected on a two run home run to center field. One batter later, it was
Austin Ochoa who homered to left field to add a third run.
Kyle Atkinson singled up the middle, and
Lane Hutchinson would add the third home run of the inning to make it 5-2.
Arredondo trotted back out for the fifth, and worked another scoreless inning that included his fifth strikeout of the game to keep the Patriots out in front.
The Patriots offense tacked on another run in the sixth as Bedgood drove home
Blake LaBuda. Arredondo went back out for the sixth, and after allowing a leadoff single made way for
Logan Henderson.
The Rams battled back into the game, driving home three runs in the inning to make it 6-5.
Bryson Adair would take over for Henderson with two outs, and the Patriots defense picked up the pitching staff with a clutch caught stealing to end the inning.
In the top half of the seventh inning, Atkinson would draw a hit by pitch to lead off the inning before coming all the way around to score on an RBI double from Hutchinson to make it 8-5.
That meant Adair would come back out for the seventh inning, and he worked around a single with a groundout, lineout, and flyout to end the game and pick up his first save of the season.
Garrett Arredondo won his first decision of the year after going five innings and allowing three runs while striking out five.
For the Patriots offense,
Lane Hutchinson led the way with a 3-for-3 day that included three RBI and two runs scored. Clark, Bedgood, and Atkinson each joined Hutchinson with a multi-hit game, while Atkinson also added two RBI.
The Patriots will take a 2-1 series lead into Sunday's series finale against #17 Angelo State as they look for their first series win of the season. That finale is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start in San Angelo.
