KINGSVILLE, TEXAS – The Texas A&M-Kingsville baseball team punched their ticket to the Lone Star Conference Tournament for the second straight season.  They knocked off Lone Star Conference rival East Central, 15-5 while Tarleton State was beating West Texas A&M, 8-5 to clinch the berth for the Javelinas. (Box score)


The Javelinas (24-22, 18-15) were briefly concerned with the Tigers (9-37, 5-31) on Saturday who scored two runs in the top of the first inning.  The Hoggies scored five times in the second inning and seven in the fourth inning to put the game away.  The Tigers were able to prevent the 10-run rule in the seventh inning, but Adrian Williams (Victoria/Memorial HS) ended the game in the eighth with a bases loaded single.


Clay Stephens (Houston/Bellaire HS) started the game on the mound for the Javelinas and picked up the win with 5.0 solid innings.  He allowed seven hits, two runs and three walks while striking out six.  Clint Brown (Red Oak/Red Oak HS) pitched one inning of shutout relief in his 27th appearance of the season tying the school single season record.

The Javelina offense pounded out 15 hits in the game.  Cody Stigall (Seguin/Seguin HS) went 4-for-4 with a double, triple, two runs, two RBI’s and a hit by pitch in the final home game of his career.  It capped off an outstanding weekend for Stigall who went 8-for-13 in the series.  Another senior, A.J. Hecker (Orange/Bridge City HS) went 3-for-5 with two runs, three RBI’s and a stolen base.  Chris Ballou (Houston/Houston Christian HS) drove in three runs while Ryan Cook (Houston/Mayde Creek HS) had a triple, drove in two runs and scored three times.

The Tigers had 14 hits in the game as Chris Montgomery led the team with a 4-for-5 performance with two runs.  J.P. O’Leary lasted 3.2 innings and took the loss on the mound.

The Javelinas advance to the LSC Tournament, which will take place May 7-10 in Abilene, TX.    They will enter the tournament as the #6 seed and will take on the LSC regular season champion, Incarnate Word in the first round of the tournament.  The last time the Hoggies entered the LSC Tournament as the sixth seed was in 2008 when they won the tournament.  For more information about the tournament please go to acusports.com/sports/2011/3/14/BB_0314115906.aspx for the championship home page.
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