ODESSA, Texas – The No. 17 St. Mary's University Baseball team took care of business on Sunday, winning 15-6 at UT Permian Basin to win its seventh consecutive series, as they won three of the four games at Roden Field over the weekend.
Sophomore
Rob Gonzalez (Pleasanton, Texas) had one of his best days in the Gold and Blue, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a team-best four RBI, tying his career highs in both hits and RBIs. He also walked once, scored once and made several outstanding catches in left field.
He was part of the middle of the lineup that was punishing on Sunday, as
Ryan Alaniz (San Antonio) in the five hole was 3-for-4 with three runs scored, Gonzalez hit sixth, and senior
Jacob King (San Antonio) was 3-for-6 with three RBI and a run scored out of the seven spot.
Freshman
Blake Allen (Bulverde, Texas) added a triple and a home run out of the leadoff spot, and
Ashton Beaird (San Antonio) was 1-for-2 with another three walks, two RBI and two runs scored on the day.
Eight of the nine spots in the batting order collected at least one hit as the Rattlers (35-11) scored their 15 runs on 16 hits, while the defense held the Falcons (13-33) to six runs on 10 hits.
Eric Tenery (Kerrville, Texas) pitched 4 1/3 innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
Christian Molinar worked 1/3 of an inning, while senior
Brody Ticer (San Antonio) picked up his first win of the year. Ticer only gave up one hit over 1 1/3 innings with a walk. Sophomore
Derek Maples (San Antonio), who started game two in the series, came back to pitch the final three innings and get his first save of the year. He fanned two and didn't surrender a hit.
The Falcons used seven different pitchers, but the Rattlers had at least one runner on base in all but the sixth inning. It is the 16th time this season the Rattlers have scored 10 or more in a game, and they are 16-0 in those situations.
The regular season title comes down to the final week, as UT Tyler heads to San Antonio for a four-game series with St. Mary's. The Patriots hold a two-game advantage in the standings. Game one is slated for 6 p.m. on Friday at Dickson Stadium.
