STEPHENVILLE, Texas — The Texan offense broke through with a big seventh inning to secure an 8-2 victory over Utah Valley (15-27, 1-7 WAC) on Saturday afternoon at the Tarleton State Baseball Complex.
Tarleton State (27-15, 7-4 WAC) won its third straight WAC series with a chance for its first sweep on Sunday. The Texans held control the entirety of Saturday's contest, allowing a lone run in each the seventh and eighth innings.
The Texans struck first with three runs in the second inning, opening with two singles, then a sacrifice bunt, followed by a Brady Englett RBI single. Sergio Guerra later scored on an error, and Jake Tatom followed with an RBI sacrifice fly to score Englett.
The Texans added another run in the fifth on a wild pitch to extend the advantage to 4-0.
Utah Valley cut into the deficit with a run in the seventh, but Tarleton State quickly responded in the bottom half of the inning. Tatom led the charge, and Slade McCloud delivered a key RBI double before Englett drove in two more runs with a double to center field, pushing the lead to 8-1.
The Wolverines added one run in the eighth, but the Texan pitching staff closed the door, retiring the final hitters to secure the series win.
Tarleton State finished the game with eight runs on 10 hits, while Utah Valley recorded two runs on eight hits.
On the mound, Ethan Wendel (3-3) earned the win after tossing 5.1 innings, allowing no runs on three hits with one walk while striking out three. Karsen Davis, Anthony Treto, and Tai Phetluangsy combined in relief to finish the game and preserve the victory.
Utah Valley's Jacob Heppner (2-2) took the loss, allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits and four walks, with three strikeouts.
Tatom and Englett each had three hits in the game, with Englett batting 3-for-3 with three RBI, a walk, a run scored, and two doubles. Tatom also had a pair of doubles, batting 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Guerra went 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored.
The Texans will return to action Sunday as they go for the sweep of the Wolverines at the Tarleton State Baseball Complex, with first pitch set for 12 p.m.
