Box Score (Game 1)Box Score (Game 2)Season StatsCANYON, Texas – The West Texas A&M baseball team earned a share of the 2015 Lone Star Conference regular season championship Saturday with a doubleheader sweep of visiting Cameron. The Buffs won the opener 7-6 in walk-off fashion and the nightcap 16-10.
WT improved to 34-16 overall and 23-12 in Lone Star Conference play and shares its first regular season title in program history with Texas A&M-Kingsville who also went 23-12 in league play. TAMUK will host the 2015 Lone Star Conference Baseball Championship beginning Thursday in Kingsville, Texas. TAMUK earns the right to host and be the top-seed in the tournament by virtue of its 4-3 series victory over the Buffs this season.
West Texas A&M 7, Cameron 6 (Game 1)A sacrifice fly to left in the bottom of the seventh by junior
Aaron De La Paz plated the game winning run as the West Texas A&M baseball team downed visiting Cameron 7-6 in the first game of a doubleheader on Senior Day. With the win, WT improved to 33-16 overall and 22-12 in Lone Star Conference play, while Cameron fell to 19-28 and 11-23 in league play.
Prior to the game, the Buffs honored 13 seniors playing in their final regular season home series. The 2015 Senior Class includes;
Ryan March,
Justin Hargrove,
Paul Lujan,
Max Brennen,
Kyle Olason,
Jacob Caples,
Johnny Gaines,
Tyler Gibson,
Sean Michel,
Heath Davis,
Aaron Blair,
Dylan Dyson and
Justin Disbro.
Cameron began the first inning with a pair of singles to left and then a balk was called on WT junior starting pitcher
Brooks Trujillo. After a lengthy discussion between the umpires and both coaches, the call was reversed, but Steven Swingle hit the third single of the inning for a 1-0 Cameron lead. The Buffs used a fielder's choice and a 463 double play to prevent further damage.
The lead for Cameron was short lived as junior
Trace Hansen hit an infield single as CU first baseman Brandaon Wright leaped for the ball as it tipped off his glove for the infield single. Hansen then scored on a RBI triple from junior
Josh Day. Blair took a 0-2 count deep to left field for his fourth home run of the season and a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the third, March began the frame with a double down the left field line and scored on a single up the middle from junior
Matt Cole for a 4-1 lead. WT added to its lead in the bottom of the fifth with a single up the middle from Cole and a RBI triple to right center from Hansen for a 5-1 lead. Hansen scored on a wild pitch for a 6-1 lead.
Cameron's Jonathan Reyes doubled to left to begin the sixth inning as it was the Aggies' first hit since the first inning and fourth of the game. Since the first, Trujillo had retired 13-straight with five strikeouts. Nate Hale singled up the middle scoring Reyes for a 6-2 score. Russ Colgan singled through the left side for a RBI and a 6-3 score as the Buffs made a move to the bullpen in favor of Michel. Tyler Cook doubled to right center for a 6-4 score. Following a pitching change by the Buffs, Brandon Wright tied the game with a RBI single and an error for a 6-6 score.
Cameron reliever Deven Youngsteadt relieved starter Javarias Banks as he went five innings, allowing 11 hits, six earned runs, walked one and fanned two for the no decision. Trujillo went 5.2 innings for the Buffs allowing seven hits, five earned runs, one walk and he fanned six.
A leadoff single and a sacrifice bunt put the Aggies in position in the seventh with one away. Lujan got his second strikeout of the game for the second out. Swingle, who hit the RBI single in the first for Cameron and the early lead, was intentionally walked for the potential out at any base. Matt Nilmeyer was sent in as a pinch-hitter for the Aggies. Lujan bested him with his third strikeout of the game getting the Buffs out of the jam.
The Buffs got a gift in the bottom of the seventh with a high pop fly getting lost in the sun and breeze by the Cameron defenders in shallow right field as Hansen reached second. An intentional walk to Day followed and Blair walked to load the bases. De La Paz hit a fly ball to left as Hansen scored on the walk-off.
WT improved to 14-9 on the year in games decided by one run. Lujan (5-1) earned the win as he pitched the final 1.1 innings, allowing two hits with one walk and three strikeouts. Youngsteadt took the loss (2-2) in 1.2 innings, allowing one hit, one earned run and he walked two.
Hansen went 4 for 4 with three runs scored and one RBI to pace the Buffs. Cole was 2 for 4 with a run scored and a RBI.
West Texas A&M 16, Cameron 10 (Game 2)In the bottom of the first of the nightcap, the Buffs jumped on the board with a double and error by Cole and a sacrifice fly from Hansen for a 1-0 lead. Day belted a single up the middle for a 2-0 lead. A pair of walks loaded the bases. A fielder's choice and error plated the third run of the inning. A sacrifice fly and a single through the left side from Gaines scored two more runs as Cameron starting pitcher Cody Upton was chased from the game.
In the top of the second, the Aggies loaded the bases with one out of junior
Justin McAllister. A sacrifice fly from Tyler McKinzie made the score 5-1. McAlister got out of it with his fourth strikeout of the game.
A double from Hansen and a steal put him at third with one out in the bottom of the second. Day doubled home Hansen for a 6-1 lead. A sacrifice fly from Dyson made the score 7-1. March singled home a run in the bottom of the third for an 8-1 score.
Cameron loaded the bases in the top of the fourth with one out. McKinzie belted a two RBI single to right center for an 8-3 score. A nice leaping catch from Gaines ended the threat as the Aggies stranded two.
WT added a run in the bottom of the fourth, but Cameron came back with a home run to dead center by Swingle for a 9-5 score. Cameron put runners at the corners with nobody out in the top of the fifth following the home run. Michel relieved Olason after the first out of the inning. A ground out to shortstop, made the score 9-6 for the second out.
A bloop-double down the right field line put runners at second and third for the Buffs in the bottom of the sixth with one out. Cole belted a double to left for an 11-6 lead. Day hit a double to center scoring another run and a 12-6 lead.
The Aggies loaded the bases in the eighth with two away. A single and error by Tyler Cook scored three runs as Cameron again cut the deficit back to three at 12-9.
Gaines began the bottom of the eighth with a home run to left center for his first round-tripper of the season and second career home run. His first dinger came at Cameron last season. Cole doubled home March for a 14-9 score. Day doubled home two runs for a 16-9 score.
Cameron added a run in the top of the ninth with two away for a 16-10 score. It was just the second earned run Lujan earned all season. Lujan earned his LSC-leading 11
th save of the season as Michel (6-0) earned the win in relief.
Offensively, the Buffs banged out 20 hits in the contest as Day went 4 for 4 with two runs scored and four RBI. Six different Buffs had two or more hits each.
