SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Jumping out hot and staving off a rally, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi took a battle of the offenses with UIW 14-12 Sunday at
It was another efficient day at the plate for the Islanders (12-16, 2-1 SLC), though, it all came in first six innings as they took a monstrous 14-3 lead heading into the bottom frame. From there, UIW (14-8, 1-2 SLC) came alive to threaten the massive comeback before junior
Maddox Thornton shut down the rally in the last 1.2 innings.
"It was a great win today and great job finishing off a Sunday and opening up conference play with a series win on the road against a good team," said head coach
Scott Malone.
The first two innings saw the Islanders' lineup straight through each as they struck early and often for an 8-1 lead through six outs. The third inning saw eight batters from A&M-Corpus Christi to nearly cycle the lineup once more in a frame but it still tacked on three to its quick barrage.
Overall, the Islanders ended with a season-high 19 hits in a single game, previously set at 15 which came just the day prior in the second game of the series with UIW. It helped them end the weekend with a total of 36 hits against the Cardinals. The Islanders entered the series ranked #22 in the NCAA in total hits.
"The first four eggs were probably as good as we could play. Our hitters just ambushed UIW from the jump and just started putting up runs and runs and runs. Their part can play very small, so we knew were going to need all of those runs and in the end we did. They're a talented offensive team and again, it's a great road series to go two out of three for a great start for us," said Malone.
Senior
Sebastian Trinidad, who has battled this year into the top of the batting order, got things rolling with a double to right before junior
Garrett Gruell drew a walk for an early two-on. Juniors
Chance Reisdorph and
Josh Blount exchanged singles to score both Trinidad and Gruell before junior
Stephen Hom loaded the bases on a fielder's choice where replay showed everyone safe. Senior
Cole Modgling drew the walk for the RBI as Reisdorph strolled home for a 3-0 lead after the first.
UIW answered with a single run in the bottom frame before the Islanders' infield did what they do best and turn the double play to avoid more damage. They have been in the NCAA top-five for turning double plays for the last three weeks.
The Islanders continued to make the Cardinals pay in the second with an onslaught of five runs. Junior
Isaac Webb led off again, this time knocking the two-base hit to left. Trinidad reached again with a bunt single before an error advanced him to second while Webb scored. It didn't matter much, however, as Gruell stepped up to the plate and blasted the ball to left to add two more. It got him to three straight games of hitting a homer.
Blount singled again before sophomore
Christian Smith-Johnson then went yard for another two-run jack of the inning as the Islanders pushed their lead to 8-1.
The Cardinals squeaked another home in the second as well but was met with another multi-run inning from the Islanders. Webb led off with another base hit thanks to a funky infield bounce in his favor. Gruell then went back-to-back in homering in his at-bats as he sent a missile to nearly the same spot for his second two-run bomb of the game. Reisdorph followed with a double to left before getting to third on a passed ball. The sacrifice fly from Hom sent him home for the 11-2 advantage.
After a four-up, three-down outing from junior
Zach Garcia on the mound, the Islanders kept attacking in the top of the fourth as junior
Bryce Logan and Webb rounded home for pair of runs to make it a 13-2 game.
Aside from a UIW run in the fourth, the fifth finally had a cooling off period from the furious A&M-Corpus Christi bats. The sixth saw the final run scored by the Islanders as Webb opened with another double to left before heading home off Trinidad's RBI-single.
Hoping it was a big enough advantage, the Islanders had to take their turn trying to handle a hot offense as UIW began a potential rally in the bottom of the sixth. The Cardinals would score three in the sixth and seventh innings and two in the eighth to all of a sudden find themselves back within three at 14-11. They got in another with two-outs in the ninth and with the go-ahead run at the plate, Thornton forced the groundout as the Islanders stayed on top of the 14-12 event.
It is the first conference-opening series win for the Islanders since the 2020 season when they also defeated UIW 2-1 to begin the SLC slate. A&M-Corpus Christi improves to 28-19 all-time over UIW and it is their sixth series win over the Cardinals.
The Islanders will now take on a daunting midweek challenge at the University of Texas Tuesday night before continuing conference play at home Thursday through Saturday in a three-game series with Nicholls.
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