March 28th, 2009
(Photo of Andrew Femath by Ron Macklin)
Game 1 Box
Game 2 Box
SEGUIN, Texas – A wild and windy day at TLU’s Katt-Isbel Field produced a doubleheader split Saturday between Texas Lutheran and Mary Hardin-Baylor. TLU grabbed the early game 13-4, and UMHB scored the late game win 15-14.
The split gave TLU a 2-1 series victory over UMHB and kept the Bulldogs in first place in the American Southwest Conference West Division. TLU won the first game of the series, 6-4 on Friday afternoon.
TLU moved its overall record to 19-11 and its ASC West mark to 8-4.
UMHB now stands at 16-11 overall and at 7-5 in the ASC West.
In game one, TLU’s freshman right-hander Brad Orosey (Houston/Cypress Creek) continued his outstanding season with a complete-game, seven-hitter. Orosey struck out 10 and allowed three earned runs in moving his record to 6-1.
TLU broke the early game open with a seven-run fifth inning.
Jeremy Macklin (Austin/Bowie/Huston-Tillotson) homered twice and drove in three runs for TLU in the win. Ryan Nokelby (Santa Fe, Texas/Santa Fe) added three hits, including a homer, and had two RBI. Chris Green (Austin/Bowie/Concordia Texas) doubled twice and tripled and drove in three.
In game two, TLU took an 8-1 lead in the first inning but could not make the lead stand. UMHB rallied for 13 unanswered runs in the second, third and fourth innings. Derek Draeger and Joseph Villegas each homered for the Crusaders. Draeger finished with three hits and five RBI, and Villegas added two hits, two runs and three RBI.
TLU trailed 15-10 entering the ninth inning. In their final at-bat, the Bulldogs received a three-run home run from Andrew Femath (El Paso/Montwood/Howard JC) and a solo shot from Macklin (his third of the series). The Bulldogs brought Drew Farr (Taylor/Taylor) to the plate as the tying run, but Farr lined out to left field to end the game.
Femath, TLU’s second baseman, ended the second game with a career-best seven RBI. He was 3-for-5 with two runs scored. Clay Childress (Houston/Jersey Village/Eastfield JC) and Nokelby also homered in the late game for TLU. Childress had a three-run home run in the first inning.
Sam VanHoozer appeared for UMHB in relief. He took over in the first inning with two outs and pitched 7-1/3 outstanding innings. He allowed just two earned runs, struck out six and walked three in moving to 2-0 overall.
TLU has a little bit of rest before heading to Alpine, Texas this next weekend for a three-game series with Sul Ross State. Friday’s game is set for a 7 p.m. start, and Saturday’s doubleheader will start at noon. Seguin radio station KWED 1580 AM will have the live broadcast Friday. The KWED broadcast will have a live webcast from www.seguintoday.com.
NOTE: Texas Lutheran honored its 1949 baseball team, the first baseball team of TLU’s senior-college area, in a ceremony celebrating the 60th anniversary of that first senior-college season. The ceremony took place between the games of the Saturday doubleheader. The surviving members of the team were given honorary letter jackets, which had never been awarded to them as players and coaches. Seven players and the assistant coach from that squad, Red Miller, were on hand Saturday for a luncheon and the ceremony.