Stephen F. Austin
Northwestern State
SFA Drops Night Cap At Northwestern State
3/31/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 31, 2012
NATCHITOCHES, La. - The Lumberjacks hit into four double plays and were stung with a two-run sixth inning as Northwestern State evened the series with a 4-2 win in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader at Brown-Stroud Field.
SFA (12-15, 5-6 SLC) had all six of their hits in the first 5.1 innings of the game against starter Jacob Roark before all-SLC relievers Joe Scanio and Mason Melotakis slammed the door in the final 3.2 innings to seal the win for the Demons (11-14, 8-3 SLC).
Freddy Villalobos was the only `Jack to record multiple hits in the game, going 2-for-4 with an RBI in the nightcap.
The `Jacks had scoring chances throughout the early part of the game, but hit into double plays in the second, fourth, sixth and seventh innings - each of the first three coming through the air - to kill each rally. Still, SFA held a 2-1 lead after the top of the sixth, a lead that did not hold up after Northwestern State scored a pair of runs in the bottom half of the inning despite recording just one hit and not having a ball leave the infield.
Cody Priest took the loss and fell to 0-4 on the year, despite allowing just three runs in 5.2 innings with three strikeouts and three walks - all of which came in the deciding sixth inning.
Scanio moved to 3-2 for the Demons with 2.2 innings of scoreless relief before Melotakis earned his sixth save of the year with two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth.
Priest was given an early 1-0 lead when the `Jacks got on the board in the bottom of the third inning against Roark when Bryce Cummings and Rene' Moreda reached to open the inning on a single and a catcher's interference call. Villalobos then brought Cummings in on a single to left field that was called a hit after Nick Doughty nearly made a diving catch.
The `Jacks made the one-run edge stand up for each of the next two innings, but the Demons evened things up in their half of the fifth when No. 9 hitter Mitch Huckaby shot a two-out double to left-center to score Nick Doughty who had reached on a leadoff single.
One inning later SFA retook the lead as Moreda opened the inning with a sure double into the right-field corner, followed by a single by Villalobos and the first of Hunter Dozier's two walks to load the bases. Ricardo Sanchez then beat out a grounder to second for an RBI fielder's choice, But one batter later, after Scanio entered to face Scarafiotti with a runner on the third, the reliever got a fly ball from the SFA catcher to center field with Sanchez moving from first base, allowing the Demons to double Sanchez off at first base to end the SFA attack.
The see-saw continued in the bottom of the sixth when the Demons retook the lead themselves, starting when Jordan Buckley drew the first of four walks in the inning to open up the frame. He swiped second and moved to third on SFA's first error of the season, coming home to tie the game when Nick Purdy singled him in. Priest then got consecutive ground outs from Colin Bear and Ryan Westbrook, but after intentionally walking Doughty to get to Nick Hinojos, lost the Demon first baseman on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases.
SFA went to the pen to get reliever Cory Ochs, but Ochs walked Ray Frias with the bases juiced to bring in Purdy as the eventual go-ahead run.
Northwestern State added an insurance run in the seventh when Bear grounded into a double play with the bases loaded, but it was no matter as the `Jacks could only muster a leadoff walk from Dozier in the ninth inning the rest of the way.
SFA will try and take the series from the Demons on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. when Colton Eubanks gets the ball against lefty Andrew Adams for Northwestern State in the series finale.
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