CHICKASHA, Okla. – Wayland Baptist put up twice as many hits but committed four costly errors as the Pioneers dropped the second game of a Sooner Athletic Conference doubleheader against Science & Arts of Oklahoma here Friday, 9-6. In the opener, USAO, ranked the equivalent of 35
th in the NAIA, benefited from a late base-running blunder by WBU to escape with a 3-2 victory.
In the first game, Wayland (24-16, 9-8 SAC) got RBI-singles from
Matthew Unangst and
Jake Green in the second and fifth innings, respectively, while the Drovers (26-15, 12-5) answered with a two-run home run in the third and a game-winning RBI-double in the sixth.
In the top of the seventh,
Arturo Disla drew an opening walk to bring up Green. WBU's clean-up hitter flew out to center, and the Drovers doubled up base-stealing pinch runner
Cesar Lopez, who was unable to get back to first and became the second out. The game ended when
Delvis Claudio's high shot to center was caught at the wall.
Both teams ended with seven hits, with Green going 2-for-4 to be the only batter on either squad with more than one hit.
Ty Jackson (6-3) went the distance, striking out three and walking four. Three USAO pitchers combined for four Ks and five walks.
Game 2 saw the Drovers take a 2-0 lead in the first on Christopher Martinez's second homer of the day. Wayland responded with three unearned runs in the second on RBI-hits from
Cooper Jauz (single),
Samuel Fabian (homer) and
Caleb Rozier (double). It was the seventh homer in the last four games for the red-hot Fabian, whose 16 dingers lead the team and rank tied for seventh in the NAIA.
The Drovers got their first unearned run in the bottom of the second to tie it up then added two more runs in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead. In the fifth,
Nathan Baca – who relieved starter
Branin Seibert after 3 2/3 – got into a jam after three walks and an error. That resulted in one unearned run, then – with the bases loaded and two out – a dropped fly-ball on a high, wind-blown pop-up by shortstop
Hayden Ingram allowed three more unearned runs to score as USAO expanded its lead to 9-3.
The Pioneers got those three runs back in the sixth when pinch-htter
Carson Parham walked, Fabian singled and centerfielder
Justin Porter homered. After a pitching change, Rozier became the fourth straight batter to board with a single prior to a fly-out to center for out No. 1. After Disla singled to put runners on the corner, Green ground into an inning-ending 1-6-3 double-play.
Reliever
Grayson Soukup retired the Drovers in order in the bottom of the sixth, then Claudio opened the Wayland seventh with a single. But that was the only noise the Pioneers were able to make in their final at-bat as Jauz and Parham struck out and Fabian grounded out to second to end it.
Rozier, Disla, Fabian and Porter had two hits apiece for the Pioneers, and Porter provided three RBIs and scored twice, as did Fabian.
Seibert, coming off a five-hit shutout of Mid-America Christian last weekend, allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits while walking three and striking out one in his 3 2/3. It was the first loss of the season for the freshman (3-1).
WBU will try to avoid its first four-game losing skid of the season when the teams meet back at Bill Smith Ballpark at 1 p.m. Saturday.
