Crusaders Cruise Past Centenary on Friday; Capture 1st Conference Win
SHREVEPORT, La. – The University of Dallas baseball team rolled past Centenary College 10-4 on Friday night in a game where UD left 16 runners on base. But Centenary pitchers combined for 13 walks and forced four errors on the night to allow Dallas to pick up its first conference win on the season.
(Game Information)
Team Scores: Dallas (10), Centenary (4)
Team Records: Dallas (12-9, 1-3 SCAC), Centenary (10-12-1, 2-2 SCAC)
Pitcher Records: W) Conrad Voss (5-2), L) Will Kappler (2-1)
Jordan Stickler (Grand Rapids, Mich.) got Dallas started early as he led off the game with a walk. Two more walks given up by Centenary loaded up the bases. Stickler then stole home. With two outs in the inning, Mark Peterson (Cincinnati, Ohio) came up clutch with a single to right center to bring across another run. That is all Dallas could produce as Centenary was able to leave the bases loaded without any further damage. Conrad Voss (Corona, Calif.) started on the mound for Dallas and shut down the Gents in order in the first inning.
UD had two on with two outs in the second, when Nathan Patton (McKinney, Texas) singled to center to bring across two more UD runs. The Crusaders once again left the bases loaded to end the inning. In the bottom half, Centenary finally broke into the score column after Preston Ludwick homered to left center field. Voss stranded a man on third after a big strikeout in the Gents half.
Brandon Griffin scored a run in the third after he walked, stole second, and advanced to third on a passed ball. Andrew Russell drove him in with a sacrifice fly. UD answered in the fifth when Michael Jaquez (Irving, Texas) singled to right field to drive in Joseph Vondrachek (North St. Paul, Minn.) and an error by the pitcher allowed Stickler to also score as UD went up 7-2.
Voss got the first two outs in the fifth, but two walks followed by an RBI single by Chris Haggard helped Centenary stay close. Voss then struck out the next man to strand three runners on base. Dallas later left the bases loaded in the seventh and were unable to get anyone across. The Gents took advantage of that situation by adding a run in their half to inch closer (7-4). Ludwick had the key hit, but the Gents again stranded runners in scoring position.
Tyler Montemayor (Boerne, Texas) got into trouble in both the seventh and eighth after he relived Voss, but he held Centenary to just one run scored to help UD hold onto the three-run lead heading into the final inning.
Patton added an insurance run in the ninth when he singled to center to drive in Josh Abalos (Lewisville, Texas). Stickler then scored the second run in the inning after a passed ball. Peterson followed that up with a sacrifice fly to push the Crusaders lead to 10-4. Kyle Neel (Houston, Texas) shut down the Gents in the ninth to help UD snap a six-game slide to Centenary and secure its first win in Shreveport since 2014.
Patton led the offense with a 4-4 effort at the plate, scoring two runs and posting three RBI. He also drew two walks to have a perfect night at the plate. Abalos was 2-4 with two runs scored and a stolen base. Peterson also drove in two runs. Stickler and Vondrachek both swiped a base in the winning effort. Voss grabbed a career-best fifth win on the season after he pitched six innings, giving up two earned runs off of four hits. He also struck out six batters. Montemayor pitched two innings giving up two hits and one run. Neel pitched a perfect ninth inning. Dallas pitchers held the Gents to just six hits. Centenary also left eight runners on base.
Ludwick led the Gents with two RBI. Haggard and Russell both notched one RBI each. Centenary used eight different pitchers on the night as they combined for 10 strikeouts.
UD grabbed a season-high 13 walks on the evening and marked its most runs scored versus a conference opponent this campaign.
The victory for the Crusaders snaps a six-game losing streak to the Gents, and is the first at Sheehee Stadium since 2014.
SOCIAL MEDIA
#UDallasBASE Statistical Standouts! Season-high 13 walks and double-digits in runs and hits lift #UDCrusaders on Friday night!#WeAreUD #SCACbsb #d3baseball pic.twitter.com/ECwQJMXe4E
— UDallas Athletics (@UDallasSports) March 23, 2019
UP NEXT
Dallas and Centenary will conclude its series tomorrow (Mar. 23). The doubleheader is set to begin at 1:00 p.m.