CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – New Orleans hung up a three-spot in the eighth that proved the difference maker as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi plated two in the home half but fell one shy in a 5-4 final to start a four-game series Thursday night at Chapman Field.
Senior
Mike Williams' pair of two-RBI singles highlighted the Islanders' offensive efforts, as he went 2-for-4 from the dish and totaled four RBIs.
Shutdown pitching from the Islanders and Privateers kept it scoreless through four, with A&M-Corpus Christi starting hurler
John Gaddis working out of a couple two-out, two-aboard jams with key strikeouts to leave the scoreboard untouched.
New Orleans cracked the board in the fifth on a pair of well-placed doubles, as the second via Pearce Howard brought two runs across the plate to move ahead 2-0.
A&M-Corpus Christi returned the favor the following frame, as
Justin Taylor and
Itchy Burts whacked the Islanders' first hits of the night in succession before Williams launched the big right-field single to erase the Privateer lead and make it a tied 2-2 ballgame.
Each club saved the remainder of its scoring for the eighth, as the Privateers used its fourth double of the night, this time from Salo Iza, to score two followed by a Travis Gober single that added the final tally in the crucial three-spot.
A
Scott Hastings hit by pitch and
Cole Fluta single provided Williams the opportunity for the déjà vu moment, as he ripped his second single to bring home another two runs and stretch his RBI total to four.
The Islanders pitching contingent scattered nine hits and sat down 10 batsmen, as Jaime Ramirez (1-2) shouldered the series-opening loss.
Islanders and Privateers resume the series tomorrow (April 2) for a doubleheader kicking off at noon inside the friendly confines of Chapman Field.
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