Huskies Claim Series with Saturday Win

HOUSTON – Jeremy Rader was one of five Houston Christian players with multiple hits Saturday afternoon as the Huskies laid claim to a 9-2 series-clinching victory over visiting Alcorn in non-conference baseball action at Husky Field in Houston, Texas.
 
Jeremy Rader led off the Houston Christian (2-5) at-bat in the bottom of the first with a single, only to come around and score two plays later from an error charged to the Alcorn infield. A double play turned 6-4-3 was still enough to see Jack Walker come home in the frame and push the Huskies lead out to 2-0.
 
Alcorn (1-5) evened things up with a pair of runs in the third.
 
Adrian Vallescorbo began a two-out rally with an infield single, followed by a Rayfield Adams III run-scoring double to score the Braves catcher and cut into the deficit, 2-1. A Kanious Davis single driven back up the middle plated Adams and tied the game at 2-2.
 
HCU would step ahead again in the fourth with the help of a Walker RBI groundout to first base, allowing Tyree Jackson to come in for the 3-2 Huskies lead.
 
The Huskies added four runs in the home-half of the fifth with Nico Defazio's single through the left side scoring two and pushing the lead at 5-2. Back-to-back bases loaded walks from Alcorn reliever Jose Cherena made it 7-2– with one of the runs credited to Braves starting pitcher Jacob Wingard.
 
Another walk with the bases juiced in the sixth made it 8-2, before a Graham Laxton RBI single to center in the eighth produced the final 9-2 score line with Levi Castilleja coming in safely.
 
David Lopez (1-1) evened his record for the year with the win on the mound, working the minimum in giving up two runs on four hits and challenging batters with nine strikeouts. The loss went to Alcorn's Wingard (0-1) in suffering his first decision of the campaign, as he went 4.1 innings, credited for allowing six runs (three earned) on seven hits, three walks and two strikeouts.
 
For the Purple and Gold, Hayden Konkler saw 1.2 innings on the bump in relief, not allowing a single hit.
 
The HCU bats were paced by Defazio's 2-for-5 afternoon, including two RBIs and a run scored.
 
Davis was 1-for-2 at the plate for the Braves, adding an RBI. Meanwhile, Adams was 1-for-4 with an RBI and run scored as well.
 
The two teams meet for the series finale Sunday at 2 p.m.
 
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