TYLER, TEXAS – UT Tyler baseball secures the series win after their 15-11 victory over the Dustdevils on Sunday night. The Patriots were outhit in the ball game 14 to 9, but the Dustdevils gave them 16 bases via walk or hit by pitch in the game.
Texas A&M International struck first in the opening inning, using a pair of singles and a Patriot error to take a 1-0 lead. UT Tyler answered immediately with a five-run second inning, sending 10 batters to the plate. After loading the bases on a single and two walks, a hit by pitch forced in the tying run. Back-to-back RBI singles from Luke Smith and Connor Clark pushed the Patriots in front, and Drew Schmidt added another run on a fielder's choice to make it 5-1.
The Dustdevils cut into the deficit with a run in the third, but UT Tyler responded with another big frame. Two walks and a single loaded the bases before a wild pitch scored one, and Smith followed with a two-run single to extend the advantage to 8-2. Texas A&M International answered in the fifth with three straight singles to pull within four, but Patriot pressure on the basepaths led to two unearned runs in the bottom half, stretching the lead to 10-4.
Momentum swung again in the sixth as the Dustdevils loaded the bases with no outs and used a walk, sacrifice fly, and RBI single to trim the margin to 10-8. The Patriots countered with their decisive rally of the night, scoring four runs despite recording just one hit. Three walks and an error brought in a run before Clark delivered a clutch two-out, three-run double to left center to push the score to 14-8.
Texas A&M International continued to battle, scoring twice in the seventh after opening the inning with a walk, double, and single. UT Tyler answered in the bottom of the frame when Schmidt doubled and later scored on Ben Lea's sacrifice fly, adding a key insurance run. The Dustdevils plated one more in the eighth, but the Patriot bullpen held firm over the final innings to seal the 15-11 win.
Clark paced the Patriots offensively, going 3-for-5 with a double and five RBI. Smith finished 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored, while Lea crossed the plate three times and drove in a run. Ethan Jezierski earned the win after allowing just two earned runs over five innings, and Tyler Puckett and Ethan Stone combined to stabilize the bullpen down the stretch. The Patriots will look to complete the sweep tomorrow and improve to 9-1 on the season.
