By Grant Abston, Sports Editor
itching performances over the weekend to win three of four from Northeastern State and become the first team in the Lone Star Conference to qualify for the LSC Baseball Championship Tournament beginning May 2.
With the wins, ACU improved to 34-12 overall and 27-9 in the LSC, extending its conference lead to two games after second-place Cameron split its series with Texas A&M-Kingsville. The Wildcats remained at No. 9 in Collegiate Baseball magazine poll and are the highest-ranked LSC team in the nation with Cameron at No. 21 and Angelo State at No. 24.
“It’s always tough after an emotional high to come back [after the Angelo State series] and play,” head coach Britt Bonneau said. “Our hitting was slow, but overall we got the job done and played pretty decent.”
The Wildcats opened the four-game series with a come-from-behind 4-3 win Friday. After falling behind 3-0 in the top of the sixth, ACU answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning after right fielder Travis Latz hit a two-run home run, his eighth of the season.
Then in the bottom of the seventh with one out, pinch hitter Anthony Walsh got things going with a single. After a fly out to put Northeastern State just one out away from taking game one, second baseman Chris Hall came through with an RBI double to tie the game. After left fielder Davis Page followed with a walk and catcher Jordan Schmitt was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Latz singled to left to give the Wildcats a walk-off win.
“He’s been really hitting the ball well lately for about four weeks now and is picking up the slack in the four hole and has been huge for us,” Bonneau said.
Latz finished with a game-high three hits and 3 RBI, while Hall finished 3-4 with 1 RBI. Starting pitcher Preston Vancil earned a no-decision after going 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs and striking out nine, while closer Brad Rutherford earned his eighth win of the season after pitching the final 2/3 innings and allowing no runs on no hits.
In game two, Northeastern State bounced back with an 8-5 win after scoring three runs in the final three innings to break a 5-5 tie. Offensively, center fielder Thomas Bumpass led the team with three hits, while first baseman Bret Bochsler, third baseman Cameron Watten and Schmitt all had two hits. Relief pitcher Matt Sullivan picked up the loss despite allowing just one unearned run in 3 1/3 innings.
On Saturday, ACU opened with a 5-3 win, as starting pitcher Cameron Aspaas improved to 7-1 after going 6 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. Northeastern State opened with a three-run first inning but managed just six hits and no runs the rest of the game.
The Wildcats scored three runs in the third to tie the game and scored two runs in the fourth to take the lead for good after Bumpass and Page each recorded RBI singles. Bumpass finished with a game-high three hits, while Page and Schmitt added two hits. Page had a team-high 2 RBI, while short stop Willie Uechi and Schmitt had the other Wildcat RBIs.
“[Aspaas and Vancil] got us deep into the game and they keep getting better and better towards the end of the season which is a good sign,” Bonneau said. “Seeing those two have back-to-back weekends pitching well is good for us.”
In the series finale, ACU jumped to a 3-0 lead through five innings before Northeastern State scored three runs in the top of the sixth to tie the game. With two outs and Uechi on second in the eighth, Watten singled to center to score Uechi and give the Wildcats a 4-3 win. Rutherford picked up his second win of the series after pitching the final 1 2/3 innings, allowing no runs on two hits. Starting pitcher Cooper Page earned a no-decision after going six innings, allowing three runs on three hits.
Offensively, Latz finished 2-4, while Watten went 1-3 with a game-high 2 RBI. Page and Hall had the other RBIs for the Wildcats, as ACU earned its seventh series win of the season.
The Wildcats play Texas Wesleyan in a non-conference game Wednesday before traveling to play second-place Cameron in a four-game LSC series beginning Friday at 3 p.m.
“We like to have midweek games and get guys playing time, and it’s good for pitchers that did not get to pitch,” Bonneau said. “It’s good to throw against a good team and have a midweek game to prepare us for a big weekend against Cameron.”
