CYPRESS, Texas – Alcorn split a Saturday doubleheader in Cypress, Texas, as the Braves took on Texas Southern in the first two games of a three-game Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Baseball series taking place at Bobcat Park at Cy-Fair High School. The games occurred after Friday's game was postponed due to inclement weather.
Alcorn took the opening game by a 10-6 margin in come-from-behind action. Texas Southern collected the nightcap by a 12-5 decision leading wire-to-wire in the process.
GAME ONE: ALCORN 10, TEXAS SOUTHERN 6
Alcorn scored seven runs across the final three innings Saturday afternoon to erase an early five-run deficit and defeat Texas Southern 10-6 in a thrilling SWAC Baseball contest at Bobcat Park, improving to 8-26 on the season while handing the Tigers (15-13) a costly conference loss.
The Braves trailed 6-3 heading into the seventh inning before the offense awakened against a Texas Southern bullpen that issued nine walks and hit four batters.
Right fielder Keatan Hawk delivered a big play in the eighth, lining a two-run single to center field that scored
Rayfield Adams III and
Kanious Davis to give Alcorn its first lead of the co test, 7-6.
Nico Garcia followed with an RBI hit-by-pitch that pushed the advantage to two.
The Purple and Gold added insurance in the ninth frame when first baseman
Cooper Harris reached on an error by TSU third baseman Evan Joubert – the second of his two miscues in the contest – allowing two runs to score.
Hawk finished 3-for-5 with two RBIs.
Davis went 1-for-3 with three walks, scored once, and was credited with an RBI of his own.
From his catcher position on the field, Garcia was 1-for-4 with two RBIs.
Chase Moore reached base four times and scored twice to boot.
TSU jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third inning, aided significantly by three errors from Alcorn starting pitcher
Devin Kriley. Jonathan Trejo launched a solo home run in the sixth to extend the Tigers' advantage to 6-3, but it proved to be their final run of the game.
Trejo ended the game 1-for-4 with the home run and two walks. Byron Robinson went 2-for-2 with a walk.
José Cherena earned the win in relief for the Braves, working 4.1 innings on the bump and allowing just one earned run.
Jacob Wingard nailed down his first save of the season with two dominant innings, striking out five of the eight batters he faced without allowing a run.
In the opposite dugout, TSU's Seve Medrano took the loss for the homestanding Tigers after surrendering four runs (all earned) in just 1.1 innings of action.
Joubert's two errors at third base proved costly, with Harris reaching base twice and scoring twice due to his miscues in the sixth and ninth innings, respectfully.
Texas Southern's Demarques Thompson hit four batters in 1.2 innings of relief, directly contributing to three Alcorn runs in the eighth.
GAME TWO: TEXAS SOUTHERN 12, ALCORN 5
Jonathan Trejo homered twice and drove in three runs, and Byron Robinson clubbed a three-run blast as Texas Southern erupted for 12 runs on 15 hits in a 12-5 victory over Alcorn on Saturday evening at Bobcat Park in Cypress, Texas.
The Tigers (16-13, 11-3 SWAC) wasted no time asserting themselves, sending 10 batters to the plate in a five-run first inning.
Anthony Ruiz led off the frame with a double and scored on a Jonathan Trejo single. Robinson then cleared the bases with a three-run homer to make it 4-0, and a balk allowed Miguel Morales to score before the inning was over.
Trejo added a solo shot over the wall in left-center in the second inning to push the lead to 6-0, and Texas Southern put the game away with a six-run third.
Ruiz highlighted the explosion with a two-run triple, and Morales, Robinson and Nate Lopez each contributed RBI singles as the Tigers stretched their advantage to 12-0 before Alcorn managed a run.
Jose Luccioni earned the win, improving to 3-0 on the season after allowing two runs on five hits over five innings while striking out seven.
Alcorn (8-27, 2-12 SWAC) mounted a brief rally but could never threaten seriously.
Asher Friedman drove in a run in the fourth,
Kanious Davis hit a solo home run in the fifth, and
Christian Dunn delivered the highlight of the Braves' night with a three-run homer in the sixth that made it a 12-5 game. For Dunn, it was his first round-tripper of the campaign for the Purple and Gold.
However, TSU's bullpen slammed the door from there, with Mikelle Mason and John Smith combining for three scoreless innings to close it out.
Alcorn starter
Kayden Sutton suffered the loss, falling to 1-6 after being chased in the third inning having allowed all 12 Texas Southern runs on 14 hits in just 2⅔ innings. Reliever
Caden Wade was sharp in relief, tossing 5⅓ scoreless frames while allowing just one hit.
Ruiz finished 3-for-5 with a double, triple and two RBIs for the host Tigers, while Trejo went 3-for-5 with three RBIs and Morales was 2-for-3 with two walks and a stolen base.
The two teams are scheduled to meet at MacGregor Park in Houston, Texas, on Sunday for the rubber game of the series starting at 1 p.m.
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