Box Score GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Tarleton State came out on the wrong side of a slugfest in the opening game of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional Tournament Thursday, falling 13-10 to West Texas A&M at Suplizio Field at Colorado Mesa University.
 
The Texans and Buffaloes met for the 10^th time this season, including the second straight meeting dating back to the LSC Championship game last week.
 
In the opening frame, Tarleton got the scoring started with four straight singles from Alvaro Moreno, Rustin Thomas, Craig Kilgore and Noel Nevarez to put Tarleton up 2-0 before a single out was recorded.
 
Despite the early and often run support, however, the Tarleton pitching staff struggled to keep WT off the board as they allowed runs in seven of the eight frames pitched.
 
"We had some inconsistencies throwing competitive strikes," said Tarleton head coach Bryan Conger. "We have to throw competitive strikes. I liked our matchup but when you give up runs in every inning except one, it's tough to win against a good ball club like WT. Anytime you put up 10 runs in a regional game, you should win."
 
Kyle Gottardy got the starting nod for the Texans and struggled early, pitching just 3.2 innings allowing five runs – four earned – on seven hits and a walk while striking out three.
 
Troyal Yosko pitched an inning of relief but was stung for a 3-run home run before giving way to Matt Herrick, who went two-thirds of an inning allowing three runs.
 
Ethan Lenz came on in relief of Herrick and got out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam with a groundball double play to Luke Slentz at second. Lenz was stung for a pair of runs before exiting and turning it over to Garrett Kelly, who was the only pitcher to keep WT off the board with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief.
 
Meanwhile, the offense kept the Texans alive throughout the game as every Texan recorded a base hit.
 
Tarleton took its final lead of the game in the third when a pair of unearned runs came across to give Tarleton a 4-3 lead. After a scoreless fourth and fifth, Kilgore plated his second RBI of the game with a two-out, bases-loaded, full-count walk to make it 8-5.
 
After WT tacked on three more to make it 11-5 after six, Moreno drove in three RBIs with a triple past a diving Buffalo right fielder to keep Tarleton within striking distance at 11-8. WT answered with two more in the ensuing half inning for a 13-8 lead.
 
After both teams posted goose eggs in the eighth, Tarleton's Dalton Weeks started the ninth with a single up the middle. He came around to score, two batters later, on an RBI double by Kevin Meredith to bring Tarleton within four.
 
Evan Robinson kept the party going with a single to put runners on the corners with one out to force a WT pitching change.
 
The first pitch from the new Buffalo pitcher was driven to the warning track by Moreno, but into the glove of the centerfielder for a sacrifice fly to plate Meredith for a 13-10 score.
 
Rustin Thomas extended the inning with a hard-hit line drive off the WT third baseman to bring up the tying run but a questioned strike-three call ended the game for the Texans and put them in a win-or-done situation for the remainder of the tournament.
 
Moreno, Thomas, Nevarez, Weeks, Slentz and Meredith all had two hits each while Kilgore, Musgrove and Robinson had one each to round out the Tarleton lineup. Moreno and Kilgore had three RBIs each while Nevarez, Slentz, Meredith and Robinson had one.
 
Tarleton is scheduled to play the loser of the Colorado Mesa-New Mexico Highlands game. Mesa is the No. 1 seed while Highlands is the No. 6 seed, both representatives of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.