AUSTIN, Texas – In a pair of close contests on Saturday afternoon, the St. Mary's Baseball team dropped both games of the doubleheader in the Battle of the Saints, falling 3-0 in game one and 8-7 in walk-off fashion in the nightcap.
Both teams are now 6-7 on the young season and conclude the series tomorrow at 1 p.m.
Senior
Patrick Fennell (El Paso, Texas) paced the Rattlers at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a pair of walks and an RBI. Seniors
Steven Wynn (San Antonio) and
Keaton Milford (New Braunfels, Texas) each had two RBIs in the second game and sophomore
Jake Mares (Fort Worth, Texas) hit a pair of doubles over the twinbill.
GAME ONE RECAP
Both teams had three hits in the first game, but the Hilltoppers scored three runs and were aided by one Rattler miscue.
St. Edward's scored two on a two-run homerun in the third inning for the 2-0 early lead. The Hilltoppers added one in the bottom of the sixth off two walks and two hit batters.
Mares, senior
Johnny Hernandez (El Paso) and Wynn each had one of the three hits for the Gold & Blue, but they were spaced every other inning.
Senior
Zach De La Garza (San Antonio) fell to 1-2 with the loss. He pitched 5.2 innings, allowing all three runs on three hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Junior
Jacob Koehler (New Braunfels) pitched the final 0.1, walking one and striking out one.
GAME TWO RECAP
St. Edward's scored eight runs on 10 hits with two St. Mary's errors, while the Rattlers plated seven runs on 14 hits and were aided by one Hilltopper miscue.
The Hilltoppers again jumped out early, scoring four runs in the first two innings before the Rattlers broke onto the scoreboard. Mueller led off the third with a single between the third baseman and shortsop and with one out, Mares singled to centerfield. Two batters later when Wynn doubled to right-center, both base runners came around to score.
SEU got one run back on three hits in the fourth for the 4-2 advantage.
In the sixth the Rattlers batted around, plating four to take the 6-4 lead. Freshman
Jake Sims (San Antonio) reached on a throwing error by the shortstop to begin the frame. Senior
Ragan Forrest (Lorena, Texas) walked and sophomore
Ryan McGowen (San Antonio) pinch ran for him. Mueller loaded the bases on a sacrifice attempt, where the pitcher attempted to get one of the lead runners – but the speed on the bases saw everyone safe. Milford hit a sharp grounder to the short stop for the fielder's choice at second base and Sims scored. Mares doubled down the left field line and McGowen scored. Hernandez hit a sacrifice fly down the right field line to plate Milford, Wynn drew a walk and Fennell singled through the hole on the left side of the infield to score Mares for the 6-5 lead.
Sims started the seventh with a bunt single. He moved to second on a flyout by sophomore transfer
Mac Papini (San Antonio) and scored on a single to right-center by Milford to push the lead to two, 7-5.
A leadoff homerun by the Hilltoppers began the seventh and they pushed two more across, including the winning run on a throwing error by the Rattlers to win 8-7.
Senior
Mason Minister (San Antonio) threw a no decision after pitching five innings. He allowed four earned runs (five total) on seven hits, walking one and striking out four. Koehler fell to 1-1 after pitching the final 1.2 frames. He surrendered two earned runs (three total) on three hits with one walk and one strikeout.
Fennell and junior transfer
Fernando Zubia (El Paso) were both 3-for-4 at the plate for the Rattlers in the nightcap. Mares was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI.
TEAM & INDIVIDUAL PLAYER NOTES
- The 14 hits in game two marked the sixth time in 13 games the Rattlers totaled double figures in that category this season.
- Zach De La Garza only walked one batter in the first game – his lowest total of the season. DLG walked at least four in each of his first three starts of the year.
- Steven Wynn is on a nine-game hitting streak, the longest stretch of the year for any player.
- After winning the first five games, St. Mary's has dropped seven of its last eight.
- The Rattlers are doing a good job of starting innings strong, as leadoff hitters are connecting at a .413 clip this year. On the flip side, the pitching staff is doing a great job of closing out frames holding opponents to a .185 batting average when there are two outs.
UP NEXT
The Rattlers and Hilltoppers conclude the series on Sunday in Austin. St. Mary's remains on the road the following weekend for a four-game series at Texas-Permian Basin before returning home to host Texas A&M-Kingsville March 6-8.
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