Except maybe for
Devlin Smith, it was a very forgettable
Tuesday afternoon at Wilder Field for the Wayland Baptist Pioneers as Jarvis Christian College came to town and won both games of a non-conference doubleheader, 10-1 and 9-1.
Smith provided one of the few bright spots for the Pioneers (18-11) as the senior third baseman went 5-for-6 on the day.
Jarvis (22-11), ranked the equivalent of 30
th in the NAIA, blew open the first game with a seven-run third inning then did the same in game two with a five-run third.
The Pioneers (18-11) committed six errors on the day, including three on one frustrating play in the second game. The Bulldogs did not commit any errors.
While Wayland sent 10 pitchers to the mound, Jarvis benefited from a couple of outstanding pitching efforts courtesy of senior Thomas Cleveland and junior Frank Montano.
Cleveland, a 140-pound right-hander, went the distance in the opener, spreading out seven hits while striking out seven and walking one. Wayland's lone run came in the sixth inning when
Gregory Ozuna led off with a single. Two outs and a stolen base later, Smith drove him home with a single through the left side.
Smith went 3-for-3 while
Austin Moya was 2-for-2.
Four WBU pitchers surrendered nine earned runs on 10 hits, four walks and four hit-batsmen, with two strikeouts. Two of those plunked batters were in JCC's seven-run third that featured half of the Bulldogs' 10 hits and an error.
It appeared Wayland might turn things around in game 2 when the Pioneers took their only lead of the day in the first inning.
Yaniel Vargas led off with a walk, went to second on Smith's bunt single, to third on Ozuna's fielder's choice and scored on first baseman
Brendon Foust's sacrifice fly to left.
But the Pioneers got just three more hits the rest of the game, while the Bulldogs again tore through Wayland's pitchers to the tune of nine hits, eight walks and a hit-batsman. When they were throwing strikes WBU's six hurlers were effective, striking out nine.
Montano, meanwhile, earned his first decision of the season for Jarvis, allowing four hits while fanning four and walking two in six innings. He threw 102 pitches, three shy of game 1 starter Cleveland's 105.
Smith went 2-for-3 at the plate for the Pioneers to finish off a personally-satisfying day for him.
Wayland returns to Sooner Athletic Conference play this weekend in McPherson, Kan., where the Pioneers will take on Central Christian (2-22, 1-11 SAC). The Tigers had dropped nine straight prior to Tuesday's game against Tabor, Kan.
The weekend series – scheduled for a doubleheader
starting at 1 p.m. Friday followed by a single game
at noon Saturday – could be affected by expected wet, wintry weather.
