Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)
Season Stats
CANYON, Texas – The No. 16 West Texas A&M baseball team battled back following a 3-0 loss in the opener of a Lone Star Conference doubleheader with a 4-3, come-from-behind win in the nightcap Saturday evening at Wilder Park. WT improved to 28-11 overall and 9-4 in league play, while Tarleton State moved to 25-18 and 8-10 in league play as its six-game winning streak came to an end.
Tarleton State 3, #16 West Texas A&M 0 (Game 1)
In the opener, the Texans used a Luis Rivas double down the left field line and a single from Ben Mauseth for a 1-0 lead courtesy of an error by the Buffs to begin the second inning. Hunter Seales hit a sacrifice bunt plating Rivas from third for a 2-0 lead.
WT had two on in the bottom of the second with one out, but was unable to score. In the third, Jose Reyes singled to shortstop, stole second and an error by the Buffs moved him to third. Following a strikeout for the second out, Dylan Lemons singled to right for a 3-0 lead.
The Buffs loaded the bases in the fourth with one out, but an inning-ending double play ended the threat as WT left two more stranded for five for the game to that point. A leadoff single from junior Bodie Bryan looked promising in the fifth and fielder's choice followed, but a pop out and foul out ended the threat.
Tarleton State had three runs on nine hits with one error, while WT tallied no runs on five hits with two errors. TSU starter Nathan Hickey posted the complete game shutout, allowing five hits, while walking three and fanning one as he improved to 7-2 on the year, while WT senior Joshua Payne took the loss (7-3 in a complete game, allowing nine hits, three runs – one earned, walked none and fanned seven.
The loss marked the first shutout loss for the Buffs of the season as Tarleton State became just the second third team to win two games in a series on WT this season with Angelo State and Lubbock Christian being the other two.
#16 West Texas A&M 4, Tarleton State 3 (Game 2)
A walk and hit batsman put two on for the Buffs in the nightcap with one out in the bottom of the second. Senior Aaron Vallance put a great bunt down the third base line to load the bases. Following a strikeout, junior Nick Canas just missed a shot to right field as Tarleton State got out of the jam with WT leaving the bags full.
After two strikeouts by WT junior starter Ryan Larison in the top of the third, a walk and a RBI double from Austin Call gave TSU a 1-0 lead. Larison got out of the jam without any further damage with a fly out to center.
With two out in the bottom of the fourth, the Buffs got a single up the middle from Vallance and Bryan came up with a single through the left side, plating Vallance for a 1-1 score. WT got a leadoff single from junior Jimmy Cubillos, a sacrifice bunt moved Cubillos to second and senior John Baiada came up with a two out RBI single through the left side giving WT its first lead of the day, 2-1.
Junior Tate Huebner relieved Larison to begin the top of the sixth as Larison went five innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, walked two and fanned six. WT put two on with nobody out in the bottom of the sixth as TSU made a move to the bullpen in favor of Will Blanchard to replace starter Evan Pontley. Cubillos singled home Vallance for a 3-1 lead with two away after a leadoff error on the Texans proved costly. A dropped fly ball by TSU scored the fourth run for the Buffs as WT led 4-1 through six.
Pinch-hitter Stacy Heinatz laced a single to left to begin the top of the seventh for the Texans. Huebner fanned the next batter for the first out. Mauseth singled through the right side and an error moved him to third plating a run for a 4-2 WT lead. A walk put runners at the corners for the top of the Texan lineup. Senior Justin McAllister relieved Huebner following the free pass. On a 3-2 count, a fielder's choice score a run for a 4-3 score and the second out of the inning. A slow grounder to first ended the game for a 4-3 WT win.
WT tallied four runs on six hits with an error, while TSU had three runs on six hits with three errors. Cubillos and Vallance each had two hits in the game as Vallance scored two runs and each drove in one. McAllister picked up his eighth save of the season. Six different Texans had hits in the contest. Pontley (5-4) took the loss as he went five innings, allowing five hits, four runs – two earned, walked three and fanned four.
The Buffs will look to even the conference series tomorrow in the finale beginning at 1 p.m. at Wilder Park. Fans can access live stats and streaming of the game at www.gobuffsgo.com on the baseball schedule page.
