San Antonio – The Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelina baseball team rallied for 3 runs in the top of the 9th to tie the game at 9-9, but Incarnate Word scored an unearned run in the bottom of the 10th to give the Cardinals a 10-9 extra inning victory.
The loss dropped the Javelinas to 4-5 while Incarnate Word improved to 8-2.
Justin Ariki, Cy Williams, Taylor Everett, Clay Bockholt and Will Alexander each had two hits for the Javelinas while Ariki hit his first home run of the season.
The Javelinas used six pitchers with reliever Jeremy Heatley taking the hard-luck loss.
Heatley pitching 2 2/3 innings of relief, allowing just two hits and no earned runs.
“Our hitters really stepped up and for the first time this year we didn’t get the pitching,” said Javelina head coach Russell Stockton. “We used six guys and none of them could hold them down. We scored a lot of two out runs, but we just couldn’t get one guy to blank them. We came back in the 9th, but we couldn’t stop them in the 10th.”
Incarnate Word led 4-2 after 3 innings, but the Javelinas rallied for 3 in the fourth as Alexander doubled to drive in two and Ariki drove in the third run with a single to give the Javelinas a 5-4 lead.
But the Cardinals came right back and retook the lead with 2 runs in the bottom of the fourth.
Incarnate Word added 3 in the 6th to build the lead to 9-4 heading into the eighth.
The Javelinas got 1 run in the 8th on a run-scoring single by Chase Myrick and then tied the game with 3 runs in the 9th.
Diego Nucete came off the bench to drive in two with a pinch-hit double to cut the lead to 9-8 and Bockholt tripled with two outs to tie the game at 9.
In the bottom of the 10th, Incarnate Word put runners at second and third with one out. Heatley induced Gideon Williams to fly out to left, but leadoff hitter Drew Hamilton singled to right to drive in the game-winning run.
The Javelinas will head to Weatherford, Okla., tomorrow to begin a four-game series against Southwestern Oklahoma starting Friday.
