SAN ANGELO, Texas (Baseball) – Levi Zents continued his torrid pace and long ball was the story with Alec Kana and Joshua Croft going back-to-back in the third inning to pace #RV Texas A&M University-Kingsville (19-8, 5-0 LSC) past No. 8/3 Angelo State University (24-7, 6-2 LSC) Friday evening at Foster Field at 1^st Community Credit Union Stadium.
 
Moved up to the cleanup spot, reigning Lone Star Conference Hitter of the Week Zents went 2-for-4 and from the bottom of the order, Kana was 2-for-3 with the solo shot. Christian Caudle continued to be patient at the plate, picking up his league-leading 29^th walk of the season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Seth Hubert matched Angelo State ace Matt Shannon with zeros on the scoreboard until the Javelinas went back-to-back in the top of the third with the nine-hole hitter –Kana – going yard on a 1-0 pitch. On the very next pitch, Croft followed with a solo shot to extend the Kingsville lead to 2-0.
 
The Rams were able to get one back in the bottom of the fourth but Hubert was lights out, allowing just three hits on the evening.
 
For good measure, a big insurance run crossed the plate in the top of the ninth as Alex Gonzalez brought home Caudle to extend the Kingsville lead to 3-1.
 
The run proved to be crucial as Angelo State put the tying run in scoring position before Hunter Lehman recorded the final out of the inning, giving A&M-Kingsville the series opener 3-2.
 
WIN-LOSS RECORD
Hubert (6-1) pitched himself out of trouble, overcoming five walks with five strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work to receive the victory. Jako Kelm allowed one run (ninth inning) and punched out four in 3.1 innings in relief and Lehman picked up his first save of the victory with the final out of the ballgame.
 
The Javelinas tagged Shannon for eight hits and all three runs to offset his 10 strikeouts. The right-hander was charged with his first loss of the season, falling to 5-1 on the hill.
 
NEXT UP
The series resumes tomorrow at 4 p.m. with a double dip, followed by a 1 p.m. series finale Sunday. Live stats and video will be available and can be accessed by visiting JavelinaAthletics.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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