STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton State Baseball (4-7) split the Saturday afternoon slate with St. Thomas (4-3). The Texans took game one 6-5 and dropped game two, 10-7.
Game 1: Tarleton 6, St. Thomas 5
Brian Panneton (1-1) drew the start at the mound for the Texans, striking out his first two batters. The Purple and White came out hot in the bottom of the first inning with Tyson Drake and Rayner Heinrich getting on base via HBPs. Trace Morrison sacrificed to drive in Drake for the first run of the day. Ike Shirey then launched a triple to center field, scoring Heinrich. The first inning was capped off by an RBI double for Slade McCloud, marking the second consecutive extra base hit for the Texans and extending their lead to three runs early in the ballgame.
The game remained scoreless until the third inning. The Tommies responded back with a two-RBI single from Matthew Maulik, followed by a defensive miscue from Tarleton State that tied the game up at 3-3.
Maulik tallied a RBI single at the top of the fourth inning, rallying the Tommies back to take the lead, 4-3. Ethan Jaques relieved Panneton in the fifth inning, putting together a scoreless inning to keep the Texans within one run.
After a pitching substitution from the Tommies, the Purple and White regained momentum, fueled by a single from Drake that drove in Lane Brewster to tie the game. Jaime Perez reached and Mason Kirk scored off a defensive miscue from St. Thomas, giving Tarleton State a one-run advantage. Trace Morrison blasted a double to center field that scored Perez easily, turning the tide towards the Texans, 6-4.
Ryan Beaird pitched the final 1.2 innings, registering the save and giving the Texans their first win of the week, 6-5.
Game 2: Tarleton 7, St. Thomas 10
Holt Gibson received the start for Tarleton State, putting together his best pitching performance of the season. Gibson pitched 5.1 innings, striking out six batters without allowing an earned run.
In the bottom of the first inning, Sergio Guerra started the offense off with a single. This was followed by two consecutive doubles from Drake and Shirey that drove in two runs to give the Purple and White an early 2-0 lead.
The Texans extended their lead to three in the bottom of the third inning when Morrison sacrificed to drive in Drake. Gibson would keep control of the game and hold St. Thomas scoreless until the sixth inning, when they scored off an error from the Texans. McCloud hit a
sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth stanza, scoring Perez and making the game 4-1 in favor of the Purple and White.
Zan Von Schlegell reached on an error from the Texans to start the seventh inning. St. Thomas tallied two consecutive singles, loading the bases. The Tommies notched their second run off an RBI walk, followed by a two-RBI double from Joe Roder to tie the game up, 4-4.
St. Thomas drew two walks to drive in a run and load the bases again, causing trouble for the Texans late in the ballgame. The inning was capped off by a single from Von Schlegell to left field, driving in two more runs and giving St. Thomas an 8-4 lead. The Tommies kept their foot on the gas and tacked on two more runs in the eighth inning thanks to a two-run long shot from Roder.
The Texans couldn’t erase the deficit despite two singles from Shirey and Brewster in the eighth inning to cut the lead to four. Drake hit a leadoff triple in the bottom of the ninth inning but it wasn’t enough to rally the Texans back. Tarleton State ultimately dropped game two, 10-7, splitting Saturday’s doubleheader with St. Thomas.
Tarleton State Baseball will look to bounce back tomorrow for their final game against St. Thomas.
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