HUNTSVILLE, Texas - Jacob Dorris pitched the final one and a third innings to shut the door on
the Bearkats as the Islanders baseball team picked up a 4-2 win over Sam Houston State Saturday at Don Sanders Stadium.
The Bearkats (25-23, 14-9 SLC) loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth with Colt Atwood at the plate. But Dorris would pick up his eighth save of the year, striking out Atwood to end the game.
Leading the charge for the Islanders (21-22, 11-12 SLC) was senior first baseman Frankie Salas. Salas went 1-for-3 on the day with two RBI as well as a sacrifice bunt that scored a run in the eighth. Zacarias Hardy also picked up an RBI off a sacrifice fly.
For the second straight game, Sam Houston State struck first with a run in the opening inning, but it didn't faze starting pitcher Trevor Belicek as the senior went a strong seven and two-third innings to pick up win number eight of the year. Belicek, a Uvalde, Texas product struck out five and allowed only six hits in the outing.
After a one-out single by Jordan Lee, a wild pitch and a walk by Kyle Danford, the Islanders scored their first run of the ballgame in the fourth. A perfectly executed double steal between Danford and Lee caught the Bearkats off guard and by the time the first baseman knew what was happening, it was too late as Lee slid in under the tag.
The team's four stolen bases on the day were the most since April 11, when the Islanders swiped four against Abilene Christian.
Salas put the Islanders on top in the fourth on a single to left that allowed Danford to score from second.
A&M-Corpus Christi shut down the Bearkats twice on the day after the home team loaded the bases. In the third, SHSU loaded the bases with no outs before Belicek induced a flyout to right field that was caught by Danford who threw a bullet to home plate to get the Ryan Farney for the double play. Belicek then struck out Jake MacWilliams to close out the inning.
Neither team was able to pick up an extra-base hit in the contest. The Islanders have one exta-base hit in its last five games.
Logan Boyd took the loss for Sam Houston State, falling to 5-4 on the season.
The Islanders and Bearkats will continue play Sunday at 1 p.m. at Don Sanders Stadium. Sophomore Devin Skapura will take the mound in the rubber game of the series.
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.
