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Box Score 2 HOBBS, N.M. – After scoring just five runs in its entire opening series a week ago, the Wayland Baptist baseball team rattled the bats Saturday afternoon, scoring 12 runs in a doubleheader against University of the Southwest in Hobbs, N.M. The Pioneers took both games, 8-0 and 4-1, in the first two outings of a four-game set with the Mustangs.
Wayland (3-2) wasted no time in getting on the board in game one, as
Mark Davis scored after his leadoff double, courtesy of
Josh Alexander's RBI-single to left field. Davis scorched another ball in the second, a screaming line drive over the left-field fence, picking up his first home run of the season, to give WBU a 3-0 lead.
The Mustangs (0-2) held the Pioneers scoreless in the third, but
Tyler Doolittle and
Aaron Vallance each drove in a run while Alexander brought in two in the fourth inning to give WBU a 7-0 lead.
Vallance picked up his second RBI of the game the following inning, giving Wayland an 8-0 lead, which proved to be the final.
Tom Bailey (1-0) started on the mound for the Pioneers in game one and allowed just two hits, one of which was an infield single, in five innings of work.
Logan Evans pitched the final two innings, picking up four strikeouts without surrendering a hit.
In game two,
Mark Davis led off the game with a single, collecting his third hit of the day.
Damion Lovato, the Pioneers' cleanup hitter, crushed a ball to the right-center gap for a triple and easily scoring Davis.
Vallance and Davis scored in the third, giving WBU a 3-0 advantage, but Alexander was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.
The big play from the Mustang centerfielder provided the home team with a little life in the home half of the fourth, getting USW's offense going for the first time in either game.
After the leadoff hitter flew out to shallow right field to start the inning, the Mustangs' three-hole hitter, Edgar Medero, got his team's first hit of the game with a single through the right side of the infield.
Wayland's starter
Mason Taylor (1-0) put himself in a good position by getting another pop-up, the second out of the inning. Taylor seemed to be out of the inning on the following batter, who hit a grounder to second base, but the ball took a terrible hop and scooted into the outfield, putting runners on the corners with two outs.
Koby Lewis drove in the only run of the day for the Mustangs with a weakly-hit ground ball that snuck through the middle of the infield, cutting the lead to 3-1. Third baseman Jeffery Ramirez hit a high chopper to second where
Brayden Blackwell was interfered with by the runner, ending the threat.
The Pioneers picked up an insurance run in the top of the seventh when
Colton Palmer brought in
Gaby De La Cruz, but
Taylor Bridges, pitching the final two innings for WBU, needed no assistance as he faced one more than the minimum to close out the game with the Pioneers taking it, 4-1.
Davis led the Pioneer offense, going 4-for-6 at the plate with five runs and three RBI. The senior outfielder also had a double and home run to cap a stellar performance.
Alexander (4-for-7, three RBI) and Vallance (4-for-6, 2 runs, 2 RBI) also provided a lift for Wayland's offense.
The Pioneers will finish their series against USW Sunday afternoon with a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. Sunday's games at Wilder Field will be Wayland's first games played on the new turf infield.
