Stephen F. Austin
Central Arkansas
Bears Complete Sweep Of SFA
3/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 8, 2009
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - The SFA baseball team scored a pair of runs in the ninth inning to tie the game, but Central Arkansas answered with two runs in the top of the 10th to complete a conference-opening, three-game sweep of the `Jacks, 6-4, at Jaycees Field on Sunday.
SFA (3-9, 0-3 SLC) left 14 runners on base on Sunday, nullifying a pair of late-inning rallies that it put together. The `Jacks were down to their last strike twice in the ninth inning, but delivered four straight two-out hits to knot things up off of UCA (9-3, 3-0 SLC) stopper Bobby Pritchett.
However, UCA scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th before it even collected its first hit of the inning on a pair of one-out walks, a near-miss double play and a passed ball.
SFA has now lost five straight games and has started SLC play 0-3 for the first time since bringing baseball back in 2006. UCA has won seven straight overall and is 3-0 in league play for the first time since joining the SLC in 2007. The game was also the first time that SFA has gone to extra innings in back-to-back games since 2007 against UTSA.
Richard Folmer collected his first loss of the year after surrendering two runs in the 10th. The senior came on in the ninth to strike out the only hitter he faced, and then retired the first hitter of the 10th before the trouble started.
Folmer walked back-to-back hitters with only one out, the second on only four pitches to put runners at first and second with only one out. He then coaxed Jonathan Yerby into what seemed to be an inning-ending double play when he hit a chopper to third, but first baseman Sean Meyers had to stretched for the throw could not hang on to the relay, allowing the inning to continue with runners at the corners. Two pitches later, Zack Dickson scored on a passed ball. Dillon Smith eventually added an RBI-single for the game's final margin.
Bobby Pritchett picked up his first win of the year, despite blowing the save opportunity in the ninth. Brent Schueler earned his first save by getting Joe Staley to fly out with the bases loaded to end the game.
SFA made a game of it in the ninth off of Pritchett, when with two outs and down to his last strike Zach Gardner delivered a single up the middle to keep the inning going. Staley responded with a double off the right-center field wall to score him, and Meyers then answered with his third straight hit of the game, a single over the leaping glove of Dickson at second to score Staley. Bo Coffman followed with a walk, but Pritchett struck out Ryan Sinclair to keep it tied.
The `Jacks then loaded the bases again in the 10th off of Pritchett, again with two outs after back-to-back singles by Tanner Hines and Zach Gardner and a leadoff walk by Justin Long before Schueler got Staley to fly out.
Brett Rogers started for the `Jacks and retired the first nine hitters he saw, but allowed a pair of runs in both the fourth and sixth innings, including a two-run home run by Yerby, before leaving in the sixth. Alex Moshier followed him with two shutout innings that included four strikeouts.
Meyers finished the day reaching base all three times he came up, including two doubles and an RBI. Hines and Bo Coffman each had three hits apiece as well, but the 6-9 spots in the SFA order was a combined 1-for-13.
The `Jacks take on Louisiana Tech next at home on Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. before going to Ruston, La., the following day to complete the series. SFA then travels to Northwestern State on Friday for a three-game set with the Demons.
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