Jacks drop pair at UTRGV

Saturday, February 29

Edinburg, Texas

3 p.m./6 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Texas Rio Grande Valley

Photo by: SDSU Sports Information

2/29/2020 10:45:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

EDINBURG, Texas – Texas Rio Grande Valley put together big innings early in each game, sweeping a baseball doubleheader from South Dakota State by scores of 9-7 and 7-4 Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.

The host Vaqueros improved to 5-7 on the season. SDSU dropped to 2-8 overall.

Game 1: UTRGV 9, SDSU 7
UTRGV countered a four-run top of the first inning by SDSU with five runs in home half of the frame and went on to defeat the Jackrabbits, 9-7.

The Vaqueros needed only one hit in their five-run first inning as they took advantage of six free passes – five walks and a hit batter – issued by Jackrabbit starter Riley McSherry. Christian Sepulveda was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in the first run, while Trey Guajardo and Darian Luper followed with bases-loaded walks. Jacob Hirsh capped the UTRGV rally with a two-run single.

UTRGV went up 8-4 by scoring three more times in the second inning as Sepulveda delivered a two-run single and Luper added a run-scoring infield single.

SDSU reliever Rick Atkins did his best to keep the Jackrabbits in the game. The freshman left-hander logged the longest outing of his collegiate career, striking out six while allowing only one run on four hits over 5 2/3 innings.

The Jackrabbits scored single runs in the third, fourth and seventh innings to pull to within 9-7. Drew Beazley launched a solo home run to left field in the third inning, and Carson Max hit a solo home run in the fourth. Beazley added a run-scoring single in the seventh.

Max, who completed the scoring in SDSU's four-run outburst in the first inning with a two-run single, was 2-for-4 with three runs batted in. Beazley and Ryan McDonald each finished with two hits as the Jackrabbits held a 10-7 advantage in hits.

McDonald and Braeden Brown drove in the other two runs in the first inning with a single and sacrifice fly, respectively.

Game 2: UTRGV 7, SDSU 4
The Vaqueros received clutch two-out hits to score three runs in the second inning and tacked on four more runs in the fifth to complete the sweep.

Oliver Closner put UTRGV on the board with a two-out, two-run double to right field and Guajardo followed with an RBI single for the second-inning runs.

SDSU cut into the deficit with runs in the third and fifth innings. Brown led off the Jackrabbit third with a single and later scored on a groundout off the bat of Beazley. In the fifth, Beazley singled, moved to second on a balk and scored on Josh Falk's double to the left-center gap.

Closner closed out the Vaqueros' fifth-inning rally with a run-scoring single up the middle. Only one run in the inning was earned as the Jackrabbits committed an error, with a run also scoring on a passed ball.

Falk continued his hot hitting in the series for the Jackrabbits with a two-run homer to left field that proved to be the final tally for either team on the night. It was Falk's second home run both of the series and the season.

UTRGV reliever Tyler Kisner struck out six over the final four innings to earn the save. He was preceded by Cannon Davis, who fanned five over three innings in picking up the win.

Jackrabbit starter Eli Sundquist took the loss despite striking out eight in four innings as he made his first collegiate start. The freshman right-hander from Chisholm, Minnesota, walked three and surrendered four hits.

Brown, Beazley, Falk and Luke Ira each notched two of SDSU's nine hits.

UP NEXT
The series finale is scheduled to be played at noon Sunday. UTRGV leads the series, 2-1, after the Jackrabbits won Friday's opener, 3-1.

NOTES

UTRGV leads the all-time series, 34-2
Max became the seventh different Jackrabbit to hit a home run this season
McDonald reached base safely for the ninth consecutive game in the opener before his streak was snapped during a pinch-hitting appearance in Game 2
SDSU shortstop Gus Steiger sat out Game 2, ending his streak of consecutive starts at 74 games
Of the 16 innings logged by Jackrabbit pitchers in the two games on Saturday, 13 2/3 were by freshmen, including all eight in Game 2 (Sundquist (4), Jack Sullivan (3) and Nate Steenblock (1)) as they combined for a season-high 13 strikeouts
Steenblock struck out the side in order in the bottom of the eighth of Game 2
Falk is batting .385 (5-for-13) so far in the series with two home runs, a double and five runs batted in
Beazley has gone 5-for-11 (.455 average) in the series with a home run, triple, four runs scored and three RBIs

-GoJacks.com-