ROSE HILL, Kan. – The Mid-America Christian baseball team's tough luck in extra-inning games continued on Tuesday as the Evangels dropped a pair of walk-offs against Friends (Kan.) 12-11 in nine and 1-0 in 10 innings. Due to field conditions, the games were played at the Rose Hill High School baseball field.
The Evangels have struggled in extras this season, falling to 0-3 in such games while holding a 10-1 record in scheduled seven or nine inning contests.
GAME ONE
Mid-America Christian jumped out an early advantage in the top of the second. After loading the bases, the nine-hole hitter Leonel Bejaran-Specht knocked an RBI single to right to score Grant Roberts to make a 1-0 game.
Edgar Martinez added to it by driving a deep fly to center to score Brandon Reese to extend the MACU advantage to two. A batter later, Jaily Paredes came up with a big two-out hit, slapping an RBI single to right to extend the Evangels lead to 3-0.
In the bottom of the third with one out, Paredes allowed just his second runner on a hit-by-pitch, but quickly got out of it by getting the Falcons' Ricardo Paris to ground into a 4-6-3 double play.
In the top half of the fourth, Mid-America Christian continued to pour on the runs. After Yan Ely Adames led off the frame with a hit-by-pitch and Paredes smacked a single to left, Felix Martinez drove in Adames with a double to center to stretch the lead to four. Fernandez followed it up a SAC fly to center, scoring Paredes from third to make it a 5-0 ballgame.
Friends put together a major threat in the bottom of the fourth by loading the bases with one out, but Paredes induced his second double play of the ballgame by getting the Falcons' Isaiah Perez to hit into a 6-3 double play to get out of the inning.
The Evangels added two more insurance runs in the fifth. With MACU getting runners to second and third on an Adames single and a Paredes double, both came around to score when the Friends right fielder dropped a fly ball, bringing the score to 7-0.
The Falcons once again put together a major threat by loading the bases in the fifth with one out, but MACU reliever Christian Ballard was able to limit the damage to just one run by inducing back-to-back groundouts to get out of the jam.
In the top of the sixth, the Evangels retaliated by starting off the frame with four straight singles, as an RBI drive to center by Romi Rinehart and an RBI single by Bejaran-Specht brought the score to 9-1. The Evangels managed to get one more across when Edgar Martinez forced a bad throw on a potential double play, scoring Rinehart to stretch the lead to nine.
Friends got a run back in the sixth, but MACU immediately got it back in the seventh on Reese's RBI groundout to first to score Felix Martinez.
However, the Mid-America Christian bullpen struggled mightily to get out of the seventh as the Falcons scored nine runs, all of which on two outs in the bottom of the seventh to tie the score at 11 and force extras.
Two innings later, the Falcons won it on some more tough Evangels luck as an error by Bejaran-Specht with two outs and a runner on third ended the slugfest in Friends' favor.
Mid-America Christian scored its 11 runs on 17 hits with two errors while Friends tallied its 12 on 11 hits and also committed a pair of errors.
Paredes led the Evangels both on the mound and at the plate. Despite not getting a decision, Paredes tossed 4.1 innings and gave up just four hits and two walks while striking out four. In the box, Paredes slashed 4-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Adames and Roberts also each tallied three hits apiece, as Adames batted 3-for-5 with two runs while Roberts finished 3-for-6 with a pair of runs scored.
GAME TWO
Despite a similar result, game two could not have been more polar opposite from game one as the nightcap was a through-and-through pitcher's duel.
Mid-America Christian's (10-4) first opportunity to score came in the top of the first as Edgar Martinez led off with a walk and stole a base a batter later, but MACU was unable to bring the go-ahead run across.
The theme of Frank Souza's start was getting out of jams often as Friends (8-8) was able to get runners to second and third in the bottom half of the first, but Souza got out of it by getting Falcons pitcher Ricky Hockett to pop out to Reese at second.
Friends once again threatened in the second by putting runners at the corners, but Souza once again escaped by getting Paris to lineout to short to end the inning.
MACU had a scoring opportunity arise in the fourth when Adames reached on an error and advanced to third off a wild pitch and a flyball, but with two outs, Joshua Fernandez popped out to the first baseman for the third out.
The Falcons pieced together a major threat in the fifth, loading the bases for Hockett, but Souza again stopped it by inducing a groundout to Roberts at third.
The Evangels best opportunity the rest of the way to pull out the win came in the ninth when Edgar Martinez led off the frame with a single and Adames was hit by a pitch to put two on with no one out. However, Martinez got picked off at second while a groundout by Felix Martinez and a lineout by Rinehart lampooned Adames at third.
Friends eventually won the contest on a walk-off in the bottom of the 10th frame. With runners at first and third with two outs, the Falcons' Jordan Burnett lined a single just over the outstretched glove of Roberts into left field to end the game.
MACU recorded four hits and an error while Friends lone run was scored off 12 hits and one miscue.
Souza was sensational in his start, tossing six shutout innings and giving up just seven hits with one walk while striking out three. Despite suffering the loss, David Lechuga pitched well in relief, giving up just one earned run on five hits with a walk and a strikeout.
Edgar Martinez led the Evangels bats, recording half of MACU's hits by going 2-for-4 from the plate.
Mid-America Christian will have a short turnaround as the Evangels will look to get back on the winning track with a four-game series at Bacone College on Thursday and Friday. MACU will play doubleheaders on both days, with each starting at noon.
