STEPHENVILLE, Texas — The Tarleton State Texans opened the final home series of the regular season with a 7-4 win over the UTRGV Vaqueros on Friday at the Tarleton State Baseball Complex.
The Texans (32-16) used a pair of solid innings to go ahead for good midgame, scoring three runs in the fourth inning before adding three more in the sixth to secure the series-opening victory.
Tarleton State swiped six bases and capitalized on four UTRGV (25-26) errors in the win.
After trailing 1-0 early, the Texans answered in the third inning when Carson Lorch drove in the tying run. Tarleton State then broke the game open in the fourth behind RBI hits from Raphael Smeenk and Jake Tatom before Slade McCloud added another run-scoring play.
The Texans created separation in the sixth inning as McCloud delivered a two-RBI single and Rayner Heinrich followed with an RBI triple to extend the lead to 7-3.
At the plate, Tarleton State totaled eight hits, led by Heinrich's 2-for-3 performance with a double, triple, RBI, and walk. McCloud finished with three RBI, while Tatom added an RBI, a stolen base, and a run scored. Kendyl Johnson reached base three times and scored twice in the win.
On the mound, Matthew McCullough improved to 5-2 on the season after striking out five across five innings. Karsen Davis tossed three innings in relief, and Anthony Treto earned his seventh save of the season to close out the victory.
Tarleton State will continue the series against UTRGV on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Stephenville. Saturday's contest will also serve as Senior Day for the Texans, with festivities scheduled to begin around 2:25 p.m.
