TYLER, TEXAS – UT Tyler baseball split doubleheader action on Thursday with a 3-0 win and a 7-5 defeat against UAFS at Irwin Field.
GAME ONE
UT Tyler starter
Rawley Hector has been nearly flawless of late, and he stacked on another gem on Thursday in game one.
Hector went all seven innings in the first game of the doubleheader, allowing just five total hits, three walkouts, and three strikeouts as he picked up his second consecutive complete game shutout.
The Lions got a one out single and a walk to put a pair on early, but Hector used a huge strikeout and a fielder's choice to end the inning. In the second, he got a groundout before a walk, and then induced the first of three inning-ending ground ball double plays on the day to get out of the inning.
That first inning would be just one of two occasions where a hitter reached second base for the Lions on the day, as Hector again allowed a single and a walk with two outs in the seventh before getting a lineout to end the game.
The Patriots offense behind Hector put together clutch run support throughout, beginning with a run in the third.
Nathan Carriere singled through the left side to extend his hitting streak to 26 straight games, a new UT Tyler record. He would steal second and then move to third on a groundout before
Ethan Bedgood dropped in a single to right field to put the Patriots up 1-0.
In the fifth, the Patriots added in two more runs as
Connor Clark came around to score on an RBI double from
Lane Hutchinson, and
Blake LaBuda drove home Hutchinson with an RBI single to left.
On the day, Carriere, Hutchinson, and Bedgood each had two hits in the contest and Hutchinson, Bedgood, and LaBuda each had an RBI.
Hector moves to 7-3 on the year with his complete game win.
GAME TWO
Game two on the day saw the Patriots offense get off to a hot start. In the second inning, they plated five total runs on five hits to take a big lead. Singles from both
Kyle Atkinson and
Austin Ochoa followed by a
Kaston Mason walk loaded the bases before Clark, Carriere, and Hutchinson each singled to played four runs before a throwing error played Carriere to make it 5-0.
Josh Pelfrey got the start for the Patriots in the second game, and he worked scoreless innings in both the first and the second while tacking on three strikeouts through the first two innings.
In the third, the Lions struck back, putting the first two hitters on with a walk and a double before an RBI groundout. A walk and a hit by pitch loaded the bases, and a two RBI seeing eye single up the middle made it 5-3.
In the fourth,
Nash Villegas would take over for Pelfrey, and he allowed a walk before a strikeout to get the first out. The Lions got the rally going, scoring four runs on two singles, two doubles, and a double steal to take a 7-5 lead.
Justus Revill took over for Villegas to close out the inning, and he walked the first batter before a clutch strikeout and a fielder's choice.
In the fifth, Revill issued another walk, but he got another strikeout, a groundout, and then a caught stealing to keep the Patriots in it. Revill again did his job in the sixth, getting a flyout, strikeout, and groundout around another walk to shut down the Lions bats.
The Patriots offense led off with two singles in the fifth before a groundout moved both runners to scoring position, but two strikeouts ending the inning. In the sixth, the Patriots got a walk and a reached on error around a fielder's choice, but a double play would end the threat.
The Patriots went down in order in the seventh inning, and they would fall by a final score of 7-5 to split the doubleheader.
In game two, both Hutchinson and
Kyle Atkinson posted a pair of hits, while Carriere, Hutchinson, and
Connor Clark accounted for four RBI.
UT Tyler and UAFS will get back to action on Friday morning at 10 a.m. in the third game of the series.
