AUSTIN, Texas (Baseball) – "It could be. It might be… It is, a home run," said the infamous Harry Caray.
Ryan Fickel took that to heart as the second baseman led the game off with his first long ball in a Javelina uniform and Kingsville scored two runs in the opening frame to continue its early dominance (outscoring opponents in first inning 36-to-8). However, a six-run third allowed No. 20 St. Edward's University (21-8) to overtake Texas A&M University-Kingsville (18-9) and defeat the Javelinas, 12-11, on Tuesday afternoon at Lucian-Hamilton Field.
Five Texas A&M-Kingsville hitters registered multi-hit performances and overall, nine players, including
Clint Wallace who had a pinch hit single, reached base safely with a base hit. Fickel finished 1-for-3 with two RBI and three runs scored from the leadoff spot,
Hayden Vesely went 3-for-5 with four RBI, two runs and two doubles and
Christian Caudle reached on all four of his plate appearances from the nine-hole and came across to score three times. Rounding out the 16-hit day for the Javelinas were
Cline Andrews (3-for-5 with two RBI),
Zach Smith (2-for-6 with two runs) and
Blake Johnson (2-for-5 with two RBI) among others.
Ryan Scott has now thrown eight consecutive scoreless innings after his 3.0 shutout frames on Tuesday and
Weston Silverberg added a shutdown eighth. Charged with the loss was left-hander
Miles Holcomb (0-2), who came out of the 'pen to throw 1.2 innings. Bobby Scott (1-0) earned his first win of the season despite allowing two runs in 0.2 innings and Cam Hatch picked up his sixth save of the season.
The Javelinas jumped to a 6-0 lead after a two-run first and four-run second. After Fickel's leadoff homer, Smith followed with a double and scored on Andrews' RBI single. In the next inning, a walk to Caudle and hit-by-pitch to Fickel put runners on first and second and Caudle came around to score on Smith's RBI single. Vesely sent a double down the right field line to plate two more and then scored himself on Andrews' second RBI base hit of the afternoon.
SEU offset the big TAMUK inning with a four-run inning of its own to make it a two-run ballgame. However, the Hogs were able to get two back in the top of the third on Vesely's two-run double – his second of the game – as Kingsville took an 8-4 lead. The Hilltoppers bats came alive in the bottom of the third, putting six runs on the scoreboard to take a two-run lead.
St. Edward's added two more runs in the fourth but a Javelina rally cut their deficit back to two after Caudle and Vesely scored on a two-run single off the bat of Johnson.
After a leadoff double by
Wesley Aguilar began the sixth, a wild pitch put the designated hitter 90 feet away from home and Fickel's sacrifice fly plated the Javelina newcomer, making it a one-run game.
The bats quieted for the final three innings, but Kingsville had one more chance to score after Wallace's pinch hit single began the ninth. However, a double play turned by the Hilltoppers allowed SEU to salvage its lead to defeat Texas A&M-Kingsville, 12-11, on its home field.
The Javelinas resume Lone Star Conference play this weekend when they head to Stephenville to take on Tarleton State University in a four-game set. The Texans were swept by West Texas A&M University in last weekend's matchup and are tied for 10
th in the region, while the Hogs sit at No. 4 in the South Central region.
Note: With the game beginning before the national rankings were released, the Javelinas were not ranked for Tuesday's contest… they are now ranked nationally in three polls and St. Edward's is now receiving votes in the polls (no longer ranked No. 20).
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