EDINBURG, Texas – The University of the Incarnate Word baseball team fell 4-3 in extra innings on the road to conference foe the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley tonight. The Cardinals are now 18-25 and 8-17 in the conference, while UTRGV moved to 22-25 and 15-13.
After both teams went scoreless for the first three innings, UTRGV got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single to take a 1-0 lead.
The lead did not last long as the Cardinals answered in the top of the fifth. Following a pair of strikeouts,
Jake Weaver doubled down the right field line to keep the inning alive. With a 1-1 count on
Tony DeJesus, he connected for his fifth home run of the season to put UIW in front 2-1 before the inning ended.
UTRGV tied the game in the bottom half of the fifth off a lead-off solo home run to right field.
The teams went scoreless for the next three innings, headed into the top of the ninth.
Christian Enriquez singled to left center before being lifted for pinch runner
Ryan Martinez to start things off for UIW. Martinez then moved up 90 feet when
Colin Cymbalista singled to right-center. Following back-to-back outs,
Kevin Ramos loaded the bases full of Cardinals after being hit by a pitch.
Trent Rucker later gave the Cardinals the lead with an RBI walk to make it 3-2 before the inning ended.
UTRGV tied the game on a sacrifice fly in its half of the ninth to force extra innings.
The Vaqueros in the top of the tenth set UIW down in order, but in the bottom half, UTRGV pushed the winning run across on three hits to win 4-3.
Starting pitcher
Zac Colletti went four and a third innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out three. Reliever
Chase Blease took the loss (2-3). He gave up two runs on four hits in an inning of work.
Jake Weaver and DeJesus each tallied two hits. Weaver was 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored, while DeJesus was 2-for-4 as well with a home run, two RBIs, and a run scored.
Cole Tabor,
Drake Anderson, Enriquez, Cymbalista, and Ramos each finished a hit.
Both teams are back in action tomorrow night at 6:30 p.m.
