STEPHENVILLE, Texas - The Texas A&M-Corpus Christ baseball team fell to Tarleton State 9-8 at the Tarleton Baseball Complex in the second-ever matchup between the two programs, tying the series at one apiece.
"We're down a few players and it puts a strain on position players to pick up the slack," said head coach
Scott Malone. "We're asking the older group of pitchers to carry the weight. We've got to hold the ship together and get through this weekend."
The Islanders began the game strong as sophomore
Brendan Ryan singled to left in the second at-bat of the day before fellow sophomore
Josh Caraway reached on an error to place runners on first and second. Senior
Steven Rivera-Chijin capitalized on the opportunity, hitting a single out to left field to score Ryan and advance Caraway to third. After an out,
Wesley Mitchell, a sophomore, hit a home run to extend the Islanders' lead to 4-0. Senior
Leo Perez made the start on the mound for A&M-Corpus Christi, making a change from his usual Saturday night start. The Texans came back to tie the game at four each in the bottom half.
The second and third innings remained relatively silent for A&M-Corpus Christi. Sophomore
Colin Purcell made his fifth appearance of the season to begin the bottom of the third in relief of Perez.
Mitchell along with sophomore
Tre Jones and freshman
Cole Modgling loaded the bases off of two singles and a walk combined in the top of the fourth inning.
Tyler Linneweber, a sophomore, grounded out to score Mitchell, bringing the score to 8-5 in favor of Tarleton State. In the top of the fifth, Caraway singled to right field, but the inning was finished after a double play and strikeout. Freshman
Zach Garcia came in during the bottom of the fifth and earned a strikeout while at it.
The sixth and seventh innings remained scoreless, only seeing pitching changes for both teams, bringing in senior
Henry Bird for relief.
Sean Sieve, a sophomore, made his second appearance this season coming in for Bird in the seventh after an inning of work.
In the ninth inning, Jones altered the game's momentum with a home run to left field on a full count. Freshman
John Maldonado Jr. came in to pinch hit for Linneweber before being hit by a pitch on the fourth ball he saw. Sophomore
Brandon Petkoff homered to right field, tying the game at eight for both teams, forcing the bottom of the inning to be played. Despite the Islanders' best efforts, the Texans won the game in the bottom of the ninth.
A&M-Corpus Christi will receive a day of rest while traveling to Lincoln, Neb. to play Nebraska at Haymarket Park.
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