'Roos Get Walk-Off Win to Earn UST Series Victory

SHERMAN, Texas - The Austin College baseball team split its doubleheader on Saturday to wrap up its three game Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference set against the University of St. Thomas, falling 12-1 in game one before bouncing back and earning a dramatic 11th inning walk-off win, topping the Celts 4-3 to finish the series taking two of three. The 'Roos are now 8-8 overall and 8-7 in conference play.

Game one ended early as the St. Thomas bats erupted for six runs in the fourth to break open what had been a scoreless game, and six more runs in the seventh was enough to make it a 12-1 final after the run rule. Austin College was limited to one run on four hits by UST starter Armando Rocha, who earned the complete game win with nine strikeouts against a pair of walks. Keaton Bradshaw brought home the lone run of the game for Austin College, chopping a double down the left field line to plate Jayden Ayala-Hinojosa in the bottom of the fourth. Blake Skipworth took the loss, surrendering six runs on six hits with four walks in 3.2 innings of work.

The Celts struck first in game two with a Gage Kimble run-scoring double in the first, but Austin College responded in the bottom half of the opening frame to grab a 2-1 lead. After a pair of early defensive miscues enabled the 'Roos to load the bases, Carlos Michinaux brought home both runs with a base hit, and the score stayed 2-1 until the sixth inning. Aryan chopra knocked in a run to even things up for UST in the top of the sixth, but an RBI double by Michinaux gave the lead right back to Austin College at 3-2 in the bottom of the frame.

Austin College seemed poised to close the game with a 3-2 win before St. Thomas managed to pull even in the eighth, with a sacrifice fly bringing home the tying run that would eventually force extra innings. Neither team managed to tally in the 10th inning, despite the Celts getting a runner all the way around to third base in the frame. St. Thomas once again got a runner in scoring position in the 11th but the 'Roos held firm, and in the bottom half of the inning, Kaden Stegent led things off with a single and then advanced all the way to third on a fielder's choice and an error by the Celts. Jorge Villalobos and Stegent then delivered the heroics, with Villalobos putting the ball into play for a fielder's choice chopper to third base, with Stegent racing home and managing to slide in under the tag for the game-winning run.

Cade Rabal got the win in relief, giving up zero runs on just one hit in 3.1 innings of action, while Jack Wilhelm took the loss for the Celts, surrendering a run on two hits in an inning of relief work. Michinaux finished 2-for-3 with three RBI and Ayala-Hinojosa was 3-for-5. Stegent was 2-for-2, and Villalobos was 2-for-6 in the victory, which helped lift the 'Roos to what is already tied for their third highest SCAC win total since joining the conference beginning with the 2007 season, having won nine games in conference play during the 2007 title run and again in 2010, and 10 games in the SCAC last season.