(Photos by Josh Moczygemba)
Tomorrow's title game is set as Trinity University will
play for its second straight SCAC baseball championship tomorrow at
Noon against Texas Lutheran University, who will need two victories
over the Tigers to earn the conference crown.
Trinity advanced to Sunday's championship game with an 8-7 victory
over Texas Luthran in Friday's first game. TLU bounced back from
that loss with a 15-6 victory over Centenary in the once-beaten
nightcap.
GAME THREE
TRINITY UNIVERSITY 8, TEXAS LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY 7
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -Trinity University fought off a
furious rally from Texas Lutheran University to reach the SCAC
Championship game with an 8-7 victory on Saturday
afternoon. Official Championship Website |
Box Score | Tim Scannell (TU) Post-Game
Interview | Pat Hirschberg (TU) Post-Game
Interview | Photo Gallery | Interactive Bracket
Pat Hirschberg ripped a two-out shot to right-center to plate the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning, keeping the Tigers from squandering what was a seven-run lead at one point.
Trinity scored three runs in the fourth, then added four more in the sixth and seventh to make it 7-0 heading into the final two frames. As it was in last night's game, though, the eighth inning proved to be key for the Bulldogs. Texas Lutheran scored eight runs in the eighth to beat Centenary to finish yesterday's action, then scored four runs in today's game to claw back into contention on Saturday.
In the top of the ninth, Keaton Bohrmann scorched a two-run double to tie the game 7-7, completing the Texas Lutheran comeback. The Tigers were able to escape the inning tied, though, setting up Hirschberg's winning hit.
Hirschberg finished the game 3-4 with two doubles, two runs, and two RBI to pace the Tiger offense. Austin Singer also had another solid day with two runs and three RBI, going 2-5 with a home run. Connor Moore was 2-4 with two runs, as three of Trinity's top four batters in the lineup accounted for seven of the team's nine hits.
Bohrmann collected two hits and drove in four RBI for the second straight game (he also had a grand slam yesterday). Christian DeBlanc was 2-5 with two runs, while Von Wendell and Zach Jacobs had two hits each as well.
Trinity starter Zack Speer gave up one unearned run on four hits over seven innings of work, but had to settle for a no-decision. Kevin Flores picked up the win to improve to 3-0 on the season, pitching the final 0.1 innings to finish off the ninth inning.
Thomas Harwell (3-3) was charged with the loss for the Bulldogs, allowing one unearned run on two hits over the final 1.2 innings.
Trinity will have to wait to find out its opponent in tomorrow's
SCAC final, which will depend on the rest of today's results.
The tournament continues with Centenary College and
Southwestern University in an elimination game at 3:30 p.m.
The winner advances to tonight's game against Texas Lutheran
at 7:00 p.m.
GAME FOUR
CENTENARY COLLEGE 15, SOUTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 3
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Centenary College kept its
Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship hopes alive
with a 15-3 run-rule win in an elimination game against
Southwestern University on Saturday afternoon at the conference
tournament. Official
Championship Website | Box
Score | Mike Diaz (CENT) Post-Game
Interview | Taylor Reed (CENT) Post-Game
Interview | Photo Gallery | Interactive Bracket
The Gents advance to tonight's semifinal game against Texas Lutheran University, which lost a narrow 8-7 game against top seed Trinity earlier today. The winner of tonight's game will face the Tigers for a shot at the SCAC Championship.
Despite the lopsided score, the game was actually 2-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning, as Southwestern had cut into the Centenary lead in the top of the inning. The offense for the Gents came to life in a big way after that, though, scoring 13 runs over the next three innings. Centenary scored foru in the fourth, sixth in the fifth, and then three more in the sixth. Southwestern added two runs in the top of the seventh, but it wasn't enough to extend the game.
Holden Novak put together a solid complete-game effort for the Gents, though it was overshadowed by the high-powered Centenary offense. Novak gave up three unearned runs on seven hits over the seven-inning effort.
Charlie St. Clair and Ben Little had two hits each, accounting for four of Southwestern's seven total hits in the game.
The top four hitters for Centenary accounted for six runs, nine RBI, and eight total hits. Michael Schimpf was 2-4 with four runs and two RBI from the leadoff spot, followed by Taylor Reed's 3-4 performance that also featured two runs and three more RBI. Chris Jones nabbed a pair of hits, while Aaron Quintanilla drove in three runs.
Additionally, Nic Parrott was 2-4 with two runs scored, while Preston LeJeune was 1-2 with two runs and three RBI. Christian Sebastien also added two runs scored for the Gents.
Centenary improves its record to 19-21 on the season, while
Southwestern wraps up its season with a 14-28 record.
GAME FIVE
TEXAS LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY 15, CENTENARY COLLEGE 6
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Texas Lutheran University
earned a rematch with Trinity University in Sunday's Southern
Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship by earning a 15-6 win
over Centenary College on Saturday night. Official
Championship Website | Box
Score | Greg Burnett (TLU) Post-Game
Interview | Zach Jacobs (TLU) Post-Game
Interview | Photo Gallery | Interactive Bracket
Centenary actually took the early lead with a four-run first inning, continuing a hot streak that saw them oust Southwestern University with a 15-3 run-rule game earlier in the day. Texas Luthrean was not fazed, though, adding three runs in the top of the second to get back into contention.
Starting in the fourth, the Bulldogs scored at least once in five consecutive innings, building up a lead that proved too much for the Gents to manage in the end. Texas Lutheran hammered out 17 total hits, as well as taking advantage of eight Centenary errors.
Christian DeBlanc and Derek Kanas picked up three hits each for the Bulldogs. Kanas scored three runs, while DeBlanc collected three RBI in the game. Zach Jacobs and Danny Brauckman had two hits and two RBI each, and also totaled seven runs. Jacobs scored four times and also hit his first career home run in the win. Mason Briscoe also went 2-4 with two runs scored.
Aaron Quintanilla drove in two runs for the Gents, picking up one of just four hits in the game. Centenary had three of those hits in the first inning.
Aaron Aleman and Brett Clark combined for a solid outing for the Bulldogs, allowing four earned runs (six total) on four hits, and striking out eight batters. Aleman pitched five shutout innings after giving up four in the first, then was lifted in the seventh after allowing two more runs. Clark pitched the final three innings for his second save of the year, while Aleman improved to 8-2 overall this year.
Texas Lutheran will need to beat Trinity twice to win tomorrow's SCAC Championship, with the first game starting at noon. The winner receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs.