STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton baseball tied and broke five school records in a 27-7 slugfest over Cameron on Friday at the Cecil Ballow Baseball Complex.
The Texans (10-8) tied a school record with seven home runs – including four in the first inning and two in the second – to build a 19-2 lead through two. The last time the Texans hit seven home runs in a game was 2012, also against Cameron. The 27 runs by the Texans are tied for fourth most in school history and the most since they scored 27 against West Texas A&M in 2008. Tarleton also recorded 24 hits, which is tied for eighth in program history.
“The kids came out and handled their business the way they are capable of,” said head coach Bryan Conger. “We need to come out tomorrow with the same mentality and be prepared to get after it.”
Francisco Rodriguez etched his name all over the Texan record book with a historic offensive performance. Rodriguez went 5-for-5 and tied the school record with three home runs to go with nine RBI. Rodriguez had two home runs in the first inning and followed with a 3-run shot in the second inning. Rodriguez also had a single and a triple, giving him 16 total bases to break Stan Farmer’s 22-year-old school record of 15 total bases set back in 1996. Rodriguez’s five hits are tied for the most in a game in school history and his nine RBI are tied for second.
Blake Adams joined the record books himself, going 5-for-5 with a home run, five runs scored and six RBI. Adams also tied the school record for hits in a game and his five runs scored are tied for second most in school history. Adams and Rodriguez, who hit 1-2 in the Texan batting order, combined to go 10-for-10 with four home runs, nine runs scored, and 15 RBI.
Jared McCarver launched a pair of 2-run home runs in the first two innings as part of a 3-for-4 afternoon. McCarver had three runs and four RBI in the game.
The record-tying home run came in the bottom of the fifth on a pinch-hit 2-run home run to left field by Hunter Hudson. Hudson went 2-for-2 with two RBI in the game.
In addition to Adams, Rodriguez, and McCarver, four Texans had two hits in the game. Jake Hasbrouck (2-for-3, 3 runs, RBI); Luis Rivas (2-for-2, 3 runs, RBI); Elvin Alamo (2-for-3, 4 runs, RBI); and Hudson (2-for-2, two RBI).
Ruben Rodriguez, Dylan Lemons, and Tyler Fowler each had a hit, giving the Texans 10 different players with at least one hit in the game.
In a game overshadowed by offense, Evan Pontley picked up his third win of the season (3-2), throwing 4.1 innings with the start, giving up five earned runs and striking out five. Mitchell Morris threw 1.2 innings of relief with three strikeouts and Eric Maler threw a perfect seventh inning to close out the game.
The Texans will resume the four-game series with the Aggies on Saturday with a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m.
Be the first to comment