Thursday, May 14
George's Home Run Lifts A-State Past UALR
JONESBORO, Ark. (5/14/15) – Zach George’s two-run home run in the eighth inning spurred a six run inning as Arkansas State defeated Arkansas-Little Rock 11-7 Thursday night at Tomlinson Stadium.
The Red Wolves (24-27, 11-16 Sun Belt) trailed three different times in the game, but go two runs in the seventh inning to tie the score at 5-5 and the momentum carried over into the next inning. George’s two-run home run, just his second of the year, put A-State ahead for the first time on the night.
Collin Massanelli drove in the third run of the inning with a bases loaded walk to give the Red Wolves a three-run advantage. Massanelli went 1-for-2 with four RBIs and three walks on the night, including a two-run single in the seventh inning to tie the game.
The eighth inning continued for A-State when Burgess scored on a wild pitch and Stuart Levy capped the scoring with a two-run single to put the Red Wolves up 11-7. The six-run inning marked the third time in as many games that the Red Wolves have scored six runs in an inning.
Tyler Zuber (7-4) got the win after relieving David Owen in the sixth inning. Zuber gave up two runs on six hits and had seven strikeouts.
UALR (15-32, 11-16) scored a run in third inning when Tanner Rockwell drove in Petr Sila on an RBI groundout. Sila reached on an error by Jeremy Brown to start the inning and moved into with a steal and advanced to third on a groundout.
The Red Wolves tied the game in the bottom of the inning when George scored on a groundout by Baker. George extended the nation’s longest on-base streak to 68 games when he led off the inning with a double down the right field line. He finished the game 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs.
A-State look poised to take the lead when UALR pitcher Sam Thoele loaded the bases with two outs, but the Red Wolves failed to plate another to end the inning tied at 1-1.
Sam Vogel put UALR back out in front with an RBI double in the fourth inning and added to its lead with a run in the fifth off the bat of Joseph Paulino to give the Trojans in a 3-1 advantage.
A-State tied the game in the fifth when Matt Burgess led off the fifth inning with a double and scored on a fielder’s choice by Massanaelli. Jeremy Brown drove in the tying run a double down the left field line one batter later, but was tagged out when he slipped rounding the bag at second.
UALR responded with two runs in the sixth, scoring a run off Owen and another off Zuber. Owen tossed five innings and gave up five runs on seven hits, while adding two strikeouts.
Zuber entered the game after Owen gave up an RBI double to Vogel in the sixth, but the sophomore right-hander gave up an RBI single to give the Trojans a 5-3 lead. Zuber settled in after that, however, and struck out the next three he faced to limit the damage to just two runs.
A-State rallied to tie the game for the third time with a two-run single by Massanelli. The rally started when Austin Baker reached on an error to start the inning and Burgess was hit by a pitch to put the tying run aboard. After a sacrifice bunt by Ty White, Massanelli delivered a two-run single into left centerfield that tied the score at 5-5.
Due to Friday’s doubleheader, the Jonesboro stop of the Arkansas State Coaches Caravan has been cancelled and will not be made up.
The Red Wolves will conclude their series with UALR with a Friday doubleheader that is set to begin at 1 p.m. For the latest on A-State baseball follow the team by logging onto the team’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/astatebaseball and following them on Twitter (@ASTATEBaseball).
Levy, Roach, Bates Lead Panthers to 6-2 over Georgia Southern
ATLANTA -- David Levy and Joey Roach combined to drive in five runs to back a strong pitching peformance by starter Nathan Bates and the Georgia State bullpen as the Panthers downed Georgia Southern 6-2 in the opening game of the final regular-season series.
Georgia State improved to 29-23 overall, 15-11 in the Sun Belt, while Georgia Southern is 28-24, 16-12.
Levy provided the key hit with his bases-loaded triple in the sixth inning that broke open a one-run game and extended the Panthers' lead to 6-3.
The senior from Marietta also produced a big defensive play. The Panthers' starting second baseman all season long played right field for the first time in his career. In the first inning, he caught a fly ball and then threw a strike to first base for a double play.
Bates (5-3) pitched six strong innings to earn his fifth victory of the season, scattering six hits and two runs while striking out six with two walks. Jerry Stuckey, Wayne Wages and Kevin Burgee finished the game with three innings of scoreless relief.
Georgia State jumped in front with a pair of runs in the first inning. Caden Bailey and Matt Rose started the two-out rally with back-to-back singles, and then Roach delivered a two-run double to right center.
Justin Jones added an RBI-single in the second to extend the Panthers' lead to 3-0 off Georgia Southern starter Evan Challenger (5-3), who entered the game with a league-leading 1.69 earned run average.
After the Eagles pulled within 3-2 with runs in the fourth and sixth innings, Roach also started the Panthers' three-run sixth with a one-out double to the left field corner. Jack Thompson and James Clements drew walks to load the bases with two outs, and that's when Levy ripped his triple just inside the bag at first base and into the right field corner to clear the bases.
Hunter Thomas drove in both runs for Georgia Southern.
The series continues with a 6 p.m. game Friday.
Cajuns Surge to 10-3 Win over ULM
MONROE, La. – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns baseball team got a strong start from freshman left-hander Gunner Leger and tallied double-digit hits as the Cajuns surged to a 10-3 victory over ULM in the series opener Friday night at Warhawk Field.
The win is the 14th straight for the Cajuns (32-20, 16-11 Sun Belt) against the Warhawks (25-27, 12-16 Sun Belt) and moves the squad into third place in the league standings with the Georgia Southern loss to Georgia State.
"He (Leger) gives you a chance to win every time he goes out there. Gunner is the epitome of a pitcher," head coach Tony Robichaux said. "Tonight was really nice up and down the lineup. We were able to hit and run and get bunts down. You have to look for that spark to get hot again, and our hitters did a good job."
Leger (6-4) picked up his sixth win of the season in the outing limiting ULM to three runs (two earned) on eight hits in 7.1 innings. The Lake Charles, La., native stuck out a career-best nine in the effort and didn't allow a free pass for the fourth straight start.
Alex Hermeling (4-7) took the loss for the Warhawks after giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits in 6.0 innings with a walk and four strikeouts.
Designated hitter Tyler Girouard led the Cajuns offensively going 3-for-5 with two RBI and scored two runs. Kyle Clement and Nick Thurman each posted a pair of hits on the night and had two RBI.
Girouard got the Cajuns out to a 2-0 advantage in the top of the first with his two-out, two run single to left.
Right fielder Dylan Butler added to the lead in the top of the second as he launched his eighth home run of the year well over the fence in left to make the score 3-0.
In the bottom of the fourth, ULM got on the board as Kodie Tidwell scored on an RBI ground out by first baseman Danny Springer to cut the lead to 3-1.
Louisiana got the run back in the top of the fifth when Clement drove a sac fly to deep center to score shortstop Blake Trahan. Trahan reached on a two-base error to start the inning and moved to third on a Brenn Conrad sac bunt.
The Warhawks pulled back within two runs, 4-2, in the bottom half of the fifth as Jacob Stockton scored on a throwing error by Trahan with two outs.
The Cajuns broke the game open in the in top of the seventh scoring three runs on three hits and two walks to take a 7-2 edge. Trahan scored on a wild pitch with two outs to give Louisiana a three-run advantage. Thurman added two more runs later in the inning on a two-out single to left.
ULM picked up a run in the eighth on wild pitch by right-hander Greg Milhorn before the Ragin Cajuns put the game out of reach in the ninth tacking on three more runs to make the final 10-3.
The Cajuns and Warhawks return to action tomorrow at 6 p.m. for game two of the series. Freshman right-hander Evan Guillory will make the start for Louisiana, while senior left-hander Trey Setzer will take the mound for ULM.
For updates and info on Ragin' Cajuns baseball, follow the team on twitter @CajunsBaseball or check RaginCajuns.com.
Mavs Secure Tournament Berth with Win over Texas State
SAN MARCOS, Texas - UT Arlington punched its ticket to the 2015 Sun Belt Conference Championship with a 7-6 victory over Texas State at Bobcat Ballpark on Thursday night.
The Mavericks (23-28, 14-14 SBC) recorded 12 hits in the game, while the Bobcats (20-30-1, 12-16) came away with 10 hits of their own. UTA was 7-for-17 in the box with runners on base compared to 5-for-17 for Texas State.
"First off, that was a heck of an effort by Chad Nack," UT Arlington coach Darin Thomas said. "He pitched his tail off and we didn't play real well behind him. We knew it was going to be tough to score and it's always tough when we play here against these guys. It's really good to get an opening night win in the series. It's a tough place for us to play and we played against a tough arm right there."
A pair of seniors led the offensive charge for the Mavericks in the game as Travis Sibley and Levi Scott combined for five hits and five RBI. Sibley was excellent at the plate, going 4-for-5 with one run and one RBI, while Scott's 1-for-4 performance included four RBI and one run. Darien McLemore and RJ Williams also chipped in with a pair of 2-for-4 performances.
Nack allowed six hits and four earned runs in his six-inning outing, while also striking out a pair of Bobcat batters. Jake Wilcox (2-2) came away with the win as he gave up one hit and one earned run in 0.2 innings on the hill. Zach Hobbs registered his first close of the season as he came in and forced a fly out in the game's final play.
The UTA win paired with Arkansas State's victory over UALR secures the Mavericks spot in the 2015 SBC Conference Championship which will be held in Troy, Ala. on May 20-24. UT Arlington can clinch a sixth seed with a win over Texas State in Friday night's game.
The Mavericks struck first in the fourth inning with Scott's two-run shot over the left-field wall. Sibley led off the inning with a single to shallow right-field, setting the stage for Scott to give UTA a 2-0 lead.
The Bobcats responded with a two-run home run of their own in the bottom of the fourth, tying the game at two runs.
UTA regained the lead with a one-run fifth inning, making the score 3-2 in favor of the Mavs. Matt McLean got things started with his single to first base. Sibley was able to push McLean to third in the next at-bat with his single to right-center field. Scott brought in the go-ahead run with his ground out to first base that made room for McLean to score.
The Mavericks added some cushion to their lead in the seventh with one run crossing. Williams led-off the inning with a single to centerfield and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by McLean. Sibley was able to single to the shortstop, putting runners on the corners with one out. Scott recorded his fourth RBI of the day with his ground out to the pitcher that brought in Williams.
Texas State used a three-run inning in the bottom half of the seventh to take their first lead of the game, going on top 5-4.
A three-run inning returned the lead to UT Arlington in the eighth. The first run came across when Brady Cox hit a single to left field that brought in Eric Tate from second base. With a Christian Hollie walk and a Williams single loading the bases with one out, McLean delivered with his sacrifice fly to centerfield that scored Cox. The final run of the inning came in the next at-bat with Sibley hitting a high fly ball to shallow left field that fell between the left fielder and shortstop for a RBI double.
The Bobcats hoped to rally in the eighth as they brought one run across off of a sacrifice fly to right field, but a strikeout by Daniel James ended the inning with the Mavs on top by one run at 7-6.
A pair of great plays by Sibley and Hollie sealed the deal for the Mavericks in the ninth. Sibley hustled to shallow left field and made an over the shoulder catch to record the first out of the inning, while Hollie made a leaping grab in left field for the game's final out.
"We're trying to win a series and trying to finish this season as well as we can," Thomas added. "It's about momentum and we talked about that before we came out here today. It's about momentum and hopefully we can keep it up through the rest of the series."
The Mavericks will return to action on Friday when they take on the Bobcats. The second game of the series is set to begin at 6 p.m. at Bobcat Ballpark.
Troy Holds off South Alabama in Final Frame, Win 2-1
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