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Box Score 2 MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Much like the last time they took the field in Las Vegas, N.M., the Wayland Baptist baseball team lost on a walk-off in the opener before coming back with a convincing win in a doubleheader here Sunday afternoon against Bacone College.
In the first game of the Sooner Athletic Conference doubleheader, the Pioneers scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning to take a 3-2 lead. But the Warriors came up with a two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the seventh to take a 4-3 win.
In game two, Kevin Torres struck out a career-high 11 and allowed just three hits to lead Wayland to an 8-1 victory.
Wayland (23-16, 10-10 SAC) and Bacone (13-23, 8-12) play the rubber game at noon Monday. The series was delayed two days due to inclement weather.
In Sunday's second game, the story was Torres (4-3), who in his last four outings had suffered three losses along with a no-decision. But the senior from Miami, Fla., was on his game again as he struck out nine, two more than his previous best earlier this season against MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.). He walked three and threw 111 pitches.
Torres was one out away from recording a shutout but allowed a walk, pinch-hit single and RBI-double before striking out the final batter to end the game.
On offense, Wayland scored single runs in the third and fourth frames, two in the fifth and four in the sixth to give Torres all the cushion he needed. The Pioneers ended with 11 hits, two each by lead-off second baseman Yaniel Vargas, Gregg Veneklasen, Matt Flores and Jonathan Ottenwalder. Flores hit a solo homer and had three RBIs, and Ottenwalder and Vargas both doubled. The Pioneers struck out just one time.
The first game saw runs scored in only the first and seventh innings.
Bacone scored two in the first on a bases-loaded walk and RBI fielder's choice. The score remain unchanged until the top of the seventh when Wayland led off with walks to Brendon Foust, Austin Moya and Ottenwalder. After a pitching change, another walk to Nick Rucker made it 2-1.
After Nick Valenzuela lined out to center, pinch hitter Devlin Smith drew another walk to tie it. Vargas put the Pioneers in front with his RBI-single to center – the only hit of the game for Wayland – before Bacone got out of the inning with a 6-3 double-play.
The Warriors rallied in their last at-bat, much the same way New Mexico Highlands did in a win over Wayland on Tuesday.
Bacone's Kord Simpson led off with a double before WBU pitcher Tanner Solomon, who took over for Brayden Price after the first inning, struck out the next batter and enticed a ground-out for out two. Solomon hit the next batter with a pitch then shortstop and No. 3-hole hitter Alex Dominguez's two-run double to right ended it.
It was the first loss of the season for Solomon (2-1), who in 5 2/3 innings allowed just four hits. He struck out five and walked none.
Bacone's Gage Staiger and Cameron Ball combined on a one-hitter, although they walked seven. Staiger struck out nine. The lone hit was Vargas' one-out single in the seventh.
