CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL | ENID, Okla. – Arkansas Tech scored five runs in its final two innings to defeat Southwestern Oklahoma State, 9-5, in Monday’s opening elimination contest of the 2018 Great American Conference Baseball Championships from David Alllen Memorial Ballpark.
The Wonder Boys (29-22) outlasted the Bulldogs (24-24) in a back and forth affair that saw four lead changes over the first four innings.
The Wonder Boys (29-22) outlasted the Bulldogs (24-24) in a back and forth affair that saw four lead changes over the first four innings. SWOSU’s Brady Burtner opened the scoring with a solo home run off Arkansas Tech starter Michael Mueller. The Wonder Boys answered back and took a 2-1 lead in the bottom half of the second when a Dylan McDearmon single through the right side scored Cody Wescott and Korey Thompson successfully executed a squeeze bunt to bring in Mark Vaughn.
Alex Pimentel followed up his two-home run game Sunday with another two-run blast in the third to give the Bulldogs a short-lived 3-2 advantage. Pimentel recorded his third multi-hit performance of the tournament, as he finished 8-for-14 with three home runs and two doubles over three games.
Arkansas Tech put up two runs in the fourth when a two-out chopper off the bat of Shane Pollard eluded the outstretched glove of Taylor Tuck allowed Kyle Gibbs and McDearmon to score on the rare a two-run infield single.
SWOSU tied it up in the fifth when a Robert Perea single into center scored Marion McLean. ATU Reliever Jared Droll entered with one out and hit Pimentel to load the bases before he rallied with a pair of strikeouts to end the inning.
Droll pitched the Wonder Boys out of another jam in the sixth as he induced a lineout to third base and a fly out to strand runners on second and third and keeping the game tied at four.
A three-run seventh inning for the Wonder Boys made the difference. After a Harry Gard base hit up the middle scored Michael Post, Cody Wescott drove in a pair with a single to left field to increase the advantage to 7-4.
Thompson extended the ATU lead in the eighth when the shortstop hammered a 2-2 offering over the wall in left for his second home run of the year.
Pimentel’s two-out RBI double brought the Bulldogs to within four and forced Arkansas Tech to use its closer, Nolan Withrow. He faced Jason Nichols and struck out the first baseman to secure his sixth save of the season.
Droll earned the win after throwing 4.1 innings without allowing an earned run. Droll surrendered just three hits and a walk; he tallied six strikeouts. Tuck started for SWOSU and pitched 6.1 innings in the loss. He allowed six runs on six hits.
Arkansas Tech faces the tournament’s last unbeaten team, Oklahoma Baptist, tonight at 7 p.m. The Bison defeated the Wonder Boys, 12-5, earlier in the tournament.