LINCOLN, Neb. - The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi baseball team defeated Nebraska on the road 4-1 at Hawks Field to tie up the series at one apiece.
"It was a big win today," said head coach
Scott Malone. "I tell the guys all season, the baseball gods will not give you anything you can't handle. They will challenge you and rip your heart out. You have to respond and navigate difficult situations. I am super proud of how we responded."
In a similar fashion to yesterday's game, senior
Steven Rivera-Chijin hit a double off of the second pitch of the day to place himself in scoring position.
Josh Caraway, a sophomore, lined out for Rivera-Chijin to advance to third base. Sophomore
Brendan Ryan hit a foul ball that was caught, turning into a sacrifice fly as Rivera-Chijin found his way home. The run marked the fifth consecutive game A&M-Corpus Christi earned the first run of the day. Headed into the bottom of the inning, senior
Hayden Thomas made his sixth start of the season.
The second and third innings remained scoreless as neither team was able to capitalize with runners on base. Sophomore
Tyler Linneweber and junior
Justin Taylor each reached base by walks in the third to get runners on first and second, but were both left on base with a ground out ending the inning. Thomas continued working hard, sitting the order down for the Huskers in the bottom of the third.
An inning later in the fourth, sophomore
Max Puls made some noise, hitting a single to snap a two-game no-hitting streak after coming off 12 consecutive games with at least one hit. In the top of the fifth, Taylor and Linneweber both reached base, either being hit by a pitch or walked, but Taylor was caught stealing and a double play ended the inning. Thomas once again sat the Huskers' lineup down in order to end the inning effectively.
Thomas continued his no-hitter through the sixth inning by shutting down the lineup in order for the third time of the day. Building off the momentum Thomas was swinging in their favor, the Islanders made it back on the board by adding another run in the top of the seventh. Sophomore
Nate White reached base on an error, advancing to second on a ground out. He would come to the plate to score off of a single by Taylor out to left field, extending the Islanders' lead to 2-0. The half-inning finished shortly after as Thomas returned to the plate for A&M-Corpus Christi. As he neared 80 pitches on the day, Thomas' no-hitter came to an end with a single, however, he collected his first strikeout of the day on the next batter.
A commotion began to build in the top of the eighth as Ryan and
Wesley Mitchell, a sophomore, both singled to place runners on first and second base. Freshman
Cole Modgling came in to pinch run for Mitchell and both runners stole a base shortly after. Puls was intentionally walked to load the bases before the Huskers switched pitchers. Two consecutive outs left all three runners on base to head to the bottom of the eighth as Thomas returned to the mound, having thrown 95 pitches. His day concluded at 111 pitches after facing a pickle with bases loaded and one out, allowing only a single run as he exited the game. In relief of the starter, freshman
Zach Garcia came out for A&M-Corpus Christi, earning a strikeout to end the inning.
The Islanders added to their lead in the ninth inning by scoring two runs to bring th score to 4-1. Linneweber and Rivera-Chijin both reached base in the first couple of at-bats before Caraway hit a single to the left side, allowing Linneweber to score on the play. Ryan stepped up to the plate next, hitting another single to bring in Rivera-Chijin. Two outs ended the inning to bring up the Huskers' lineup in which Garcia struck out two, with the last one ending the game.
Malone praised the pitching staff after the game, saying, "Thomas was outstanding. He was effectively wild and that made it very difficult for a very good hitting team. I couldn't be more proud of Garcia; he entered the game in the biggest spot of the year."
The Islanders and Huskers will play for the series tomorrow at 12:05 p.m. at Hawks Field.
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