ABILENE, Texas – A two-run home run with two outs and the game tied at five in the ninth inning from
Cris Enriquez helped Tarleton secure the series opener, 7-5, over Abilene Christian at Crutcher Scott Field on Friday afternoon.
Both teams finished with 10 hits but it was the Texans (24-22, 8-15 WAC) who snapped a six game losing streak to take the rivalry game.
Tarleton and ACU (29-20, 13-12 WAC) entered the ninth inning deadlocked at five-all.
The first two Texans up to bat went down on infield groundouts.
Jack Wagner managed a single through the right side in the third at bat of the inning to put a runner on for Enriquez with two outs.
The Fontana, Calif., native took a ball deep over the right field wall on a 2-1 count to put Tarleton ahead for good, 7-5, his third home run of the year.
Zane Badmaev (S, 3) pitched the ninth, picking up the save as he forced two fly outs and an infield groundout.
Enriquez paced Tarleton with three RBI while
Trace Morrison added two of his own. Wagner had two hits, two runs scored and an RBI.
Mason Hammonds had two hits and two runs scored.
Hunter Day got the start for Tarleton, throwing 6.0 innings allowing four runs (two earned) on nine hits, striking out five and walking one.
Zach Poe (W, 1-1) earned the win as he pitched 2.0 innings, the seventh and eighth, allowing one run on one hit. He struck out four and walked one.
The Texans struck first with three runs in the first inning.
Jack Wagner laced an RBI double to right center field while Enriquez and
Dylan Kurahashi-Choy Foo both added infield groundout RBI's.
Tarleton plated two more in the second inning, its last runs until the ninth inning. Morrison hit a two-run single to left center field that scored Hammonds and
Brandon Howell.
ACU used three runs in the fourth inning to make it 5-4. A Grayson Tatrow solo home run to right field for the Wildcats in the seventh inning tied the game at five.
Game two will be Saturday at 2:05 p.m. CT at Crutcher Scott Field. The game can be streamed on WACinternational.tv.
