VICTORIA, Texas – The Louisiana Christian University baseball team battled back from an early six-run deficit to tie the score in the eighth inning, but a four-spot in the bottom of the eighth was too much to overcome as the #20 Texas A&M-Victoria Jaguars won the series with a 12-8 win over the Wildcats Saturday at Riverside Stadium.
Early pitching woes got Louisiana Christian (19-4, 4-2 RRAC) into trouble. Four walks helped Texas A&M-Victoria (13-8, 4-2 RRAC) score two runs in the first inning, and then a walk and a hit batter was part of a three-run second inning for the Jaguars as TAMUV took a 5-0 lead after two complete.
A&M-Victoria added another run in the fourth inning off a solo home run to take a 6-0 after four, but that's where the LCU rally started.
Luke Morgan got the rally started with an infield single to start the fifth inning.
Caleb Brown then doubled, moving Morgan to third with no outs. A ground ball to shortstop by
Sterling Sims was booted, allowing Morgan to score.
Harrison Waxley made that mistake hurt, driving a ball in the right-center, racing all the way around to third for a triple which scored both Brown and Sims.
Jake Messina followed Waxley and did the job with a ground ball to short which allowed Waxley to come home from third, making it a two-run game at 6-4.
The Jaguars opened the gap a little wider in the bottom half of the inning, plating two on a RBI single to make it a four-run deficit at 8-4 through five.
Matthew Cody got one closer in the top of the sixth with a solo home run to left-center, making it 8-5. This time, TAMUV had no response in the bottom half.
In the seventh, Waxley led off the inning with a double to center. With one out,
Braden McLin beat out an infield single which moved Waxley to third.
Brady Huffman came through with a base hit to center which brought Waxley home, making it a two-run game once again at 8-6.
After keeping the Jaguars from responding in the bottom of the seventh, the Wildcats got the score back even in the eighth. Cody started the inning on base as the TAMUV first baseman misplayed his ground ball.
Owen Simoneaux dropped a base hit into left to move Cody to second. Brown laid down a bunt to move them both into scoring position.
Sims then pushed one across as the Jaguar third baseman booted his grounder and Cody came home to score. Waxley they jumped all over a new TAMUV pitcher, dropping a base hit into center field which allowed Simoneaux to score, tying the score at 8-8.
But it was another big two-out rally in the bottom of the eighth which decided the game as the Jaguars plated four runs with two away for the game's final score.
Waxley finished the game just a home run short of the cycle, going 3-for-4 with a double, triple, three RBI, and scored twice.
Sims didn't get a base hit in his four at bats, but did knock in two runs and scored once.
Cody was 1-for-5 with his one hit being his second home run of the season. He knocked in one run and scored twice.
Huffman was 1-for-4 with a walk and a RBI.
Brown (1-1) got the decision on the mound as he pitched 2.1 innings of relief and allowed four hits and four runs, three earned, walked two and struck out two.
Jacob Bareswill got the start but struggled with four walks and two runs, both earned, without allowing a hit or getting a strikeout in 0.1 innings of work.
Alan Mason threw an inning and gave up two hits and three runs, all earned, with one walk and no strikeouts.
Simoneaux settled things down after the early struggles, throwing four innings and giving up three hits and three runs, two earned, with six strikeouts and three walks.
McLin finished the game on the mound, getting the final out after giving up a single as he faced just two batters over 0.1 innings of work.
The Wildcats remain on the road for their next conference series as LCU heads to New Mexico for three games against the University of the Southwest. The series against the Mustangs (6-14, 2-4 RRAC) starts with a doubleheader on Fri., March 6 with first pitch of game one scheduled for 12 p.m. MST/1 p.m. CST at Jake Williams Field.
