OKLAHOMA CITY - The Mid-America Christian University baseball team welcomed their third ranked opponent in Sooner Athletic COnference play to James Curtis Field on Friday, hosting the NAIA #15 Texas Wesleyan University Rams. MACU played well for much of the day, but in the end, the Evangels were unable to find a victory.
MACU (10-19, 5-11) struck first on the day, but they were unable to hold off the Rams (33-8, 13-4 SAC) in game one, falling 3-1, and in the back half of the day's activities, Texas Wesleyan jumped out to a 4-0 lead and they never looked back, taking the game 12-4.
A two-out single from Diego Pichardo in the bottom of the third inning of game one gave the Evangels life, and MACU capitalized. Pichardo stole second base, and Felix Martinez lashed a base hit through the right side of the infield to drive him in and put MACU on top 1-0.
An unearned run in the top of the fourth tied the game, but MACU starting pitcher Ben Donnell pitched brilliantly for MACU into the seventh frame. Donnell retired nine in a row early in the game, and he did not allow a runner to third, save for the runner who scored on a MACU error in the top of the fourth, until the Rams got a bunt base hit in the top of the seventh frame o load the bases.
A one-out seventh inning single to center brought in two for Texas Wesleyan and ended Donnell's day, and Reid Bukowski came in and notched the final two outs of the inning to give MACU a chance in the bottom of the seventh down only two, but the Evangels went down in order and Texas Wesleyan took the win.
Rams' closer Parker Robinson (5-0) earned the win, retiring all four men he faced in the game, two of them by strikeout. Donnell (2-5) allowed three runs in six and two-thirds innings, and he gave up seven hits and two walks while he notched three punchouts.
MACU had four singles in the game, one apiece from Edgar Martinez, Pichardo, Felix Martinez, and Kevin Lentzner. Pichardo scored the Evangels' run, and it was driven in by Felix Martinez.
The Rams jumped on top in the day's second contest, plating four runs in the top of the first, but MACU clawed their way back into the ballgame. Pichardo scored on an error after a Felix Martinez single in the top of the first inning, and Martinez later came in to score on a knock from Junior Aracena to pull MACU within two at 4-2.
Texas Wesleyan used a pair of home runs - a two run blast and an inside the park job - to open a 7-2 lead, but Pichardo struck in the bottom of the fifth. Edgar Martinez led off the inning with a double, and Pichardo followed with his fifth home run of the season, a high-arcing fly ball that carried out to right-center. MACU held the Rams off the board in the top of the sixth, but in the seventh, Texas Weslean broke things open for five runs off three different MACU pitchers as they took the win, 12-4.
Houston Glad (7-2) allowed four runs, three earned, on seven hits, three walks and nine strikeouts in the complete game victory. Noel Diaz (2-4) was touched up for nine runs, eight earned, on eight hits in six-plus innings. Diaz walked five and struck out three.
Pichardo doubled and homered for the only multi-hit game of the day for MACU. Pichardo also scored twice and drove in a pair in the game. Edgar Martinez had MACU's only other extra base hit - a double before the Pichardo long ball 0 and he and Felix Martinez scored the other two MACU runs in the game.
The teams are scheduled to conclude their weekend series on Saturday at MACU, with first pitch slated for 1 p.m.
