CORPUS CHRISTI - Texas A&M-Corpus Christi scored eight runs in the bottom of the first, but
Stephen F. Austin overcame the deficit with a late rally to take the rubber game of the three-game series, 11-10, at Chapman Field Sunday afternoon.
The Islanders (11-12, 3-6 SLC) had a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth with senior Kyle Danford at the plate and runners at second and third, but Lumberjacks' closer Tyler Widenfeld induced a fly ball to left field to end the late Islanders run and pick up the save.
Sophomore Brett Burner started the ninth with an infield single to the left side that he was able to beat out. With a right-hander on the mound, the Islanders pinch-hit Dom Lopez, who came into the game 0-for-8 on the year. The junior delivered on of the most clutch hits of the game as he sent a ball to left field. Burner and Lopez would each advance a bag on a wild pitch.
Third baseman Dawson Yates picked up his only hit of the game at one of the most important points as he flipped a ball into left field that scored Burner form third to cut the Lumberjack lead to just one at 11-10.
Stephen F. Austin (9-19, 4-7 SLC) would catch a break though, as Brandon Guilford came to the plate to bunt. With a 1-0 count, Widenfeld sent a ball to the inside of the plate and as Guilford attempted to turn away from a pitch, the ball caught the bat and rolled up the first base line for a 3-5-4 double play.
The Islanders couldn't have asked for a better start to the game, with senior Jordan Lee leading off the first with a triple and Kyle Danford following with a triple of his own, scoring on a throwing error from right field.
Both teams were caught off guard by the Chapman Field winds today, which was a steady 25 mph out to right field throughout the contest.
Tyler Ware and Justin Perales would draw consecutive walks before Frankie Salas sent a ball to right to score Ware from second.
That forced Lumberjacks head coach Johnny Cardenas to make a pitching change as the Islanders had reached base six-straight times. The Islanders would bat around the order to open the game and erase an early one-run SFA lead with eight of their own.
Stephen F. Austin seized the momentum away from the Islanders in the second innings, scoring four runs to make it an 8-5 game. The Lumberjacks would continue to chip away at the lead, plating a pair of runs in the third and fourth innings to tie the game at nine.
With two outs in the eighth, SFA got things going with consecutive walks before Garrett McMullen delivered the go-ahead runs on a double that was lined to the left-center gap.
Right-hander Jacob Dorris (0-2) took the loss for the Islanders and Patrick Ledet (2-0) picked up the win for the Lumberjacks. In all, 12 pitchers were used in the game. Nolan Holland went three and a third innings for the Islanders in relief while Grant Page tossed four complete after replacing SFA's starting pitcher Jarred Greene.
Burner and Danford finished with three hits apiece while the Lumberjacks' Kyle Thornell went 3-for-3 with a home run.
The team will hit the road over the next week, first with a Tuesday matchup with Texas in Austin at 6 p.m. That game can be seen live on the Longhorn Network. The Islanders will then head the Beaumont for a weekend series with Lamar.
For updates throughout the season be sure to follow the team on Twitter and Instagram (@IslandersBSB) and Facebook (Islanders Baseball). Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Islanders Front Row App at GoIslanders.com/frontrow.
