WAXAHACHIE, Texas – The MACU baseball team rallied late in both games of its doubleheader at No. 24 Southwestern Assemblies of God on Saturday. The Evangels scored eight runs in the final three innings of an 8-3 win in game one before pushing across 11 runs in the last three frames while smashing a single-game record six homers in a 14-4 victory in the second game.
GAME ONE
SCORE
- Mid-America Christian 8, SW Assemblies of God 3
- Mid-America Christian (32-10, 14-6 SAC)
- SW Assemblies of God (27-16, 11-9 SAC)
PITCHING DECISION
TOP PERFORMERS
- Cole Fuecker – 1-3, HR, 3 RBI
- Jacob Police – 1-1, 2B, 2 RBI
- Carlos Medina – 2-4, 2 2B
- Isaac Baez – W, 6 IP, 3 ER, 9 H, 1 BB, 4 SO
SCORING SUMMARY
- BTM 3rd – SAGU – Avery Chatman singled to left, RBI; Nick Mosley scored – SAGU 1, MACU 0
- BTM 3rd – SAGU – Bryson Collins singled to right, RBI; Avery Chatman scored – SAGU 2, MACU 0
- BTM 4th – SAGU – Andrew Ortiz homered to right-center, RBI – SAGU 3, MACU 0
- TOP 5th – MACU – Caden Harris homered to left, 2 RBI; German Sepulveda scored – SAGU 3, MACU 2
- TOP 6th – MACU – Yan Ely Adames homered to center, RBI – MACU 3, SAGU 3
- TOP 6th – MACU – Cole Fuecker homered to left-center, 2 RBI; Jacob Police scored – MACU 5, SAGU 3
- TOP 7th – MACU – Jacob Police doubled down rf line, 2 RBI; Makael Shaw scored; Noel McGarry-Doyle scored – MACU 7, SAGU 3
- TOP 7th – MACU – Cole Fuecker hit a sac fly to cf, RBI; Malachi Fuller scored – MACU 8, SAGU 3
GAME NOTES
- Mid-America Christian scored its eight runs on nine hits while SAGU was held to three runs on 10 hits.
- The Lions struck first with a big third inning, pushing across two runs along with another run in the fourth on a solo home run by Andrew Ortiz to make it a 3-0 ballgame.
- In the top of the fifth, the Evangels were finally able to trim into their deficit on a two-run blast to left from Caden Harris, cutting it to a 3-2 game.
- The MACU bats carried their momentum into the sixth as the Evangels knocked a pair over the wall in the frame. Yan Ely Adames opened the frame with a solo jack to center to tie things up 3-3. After SAGU starter Matthew Hickey walked German Sepulveda, Cole Fuecker came up to the plate and blasted a two-run homer over the left-center field fence to give MACU its first and only lead at 5-3.
- The Evangels put up another three-spot in the top of the seventh. After Noel McGarry-Doyle led off the frame with a walk and Conner McKinney bashed a double to center to put a pair in scoring position, the Lions elected to intentionally walk Adames to load the bases to create a force out at any bag. However, the strategy didn't pay off for SAGU as Jacob Police drove two in with a double down the right field line before Fuecker pushed across the final run of the game with a sac fly to deep center to plate Malachi Fuller, setting the score to 8-3.
- Cole Fuecker led the MACU offensive efforts, finishing the day 1-for-3 with his go-ahead two-RBI homer and a sac fly for a team-high three RBIs.
- Caden Harris put together a solid day at the plate going 1-for-4 with a home run, two RBIs and a run scored.
- Yan Ely Adames' game-tying home run in the sixth made for a career milestone as the graduate student catcher and outfielder is the only MACU player in the NAIA Era to record 30 career homers.
- After tossing a pair of rocky innings in the third and fourth, Issac Baez settled in by allowing only two hits over the next two innings. Baez picked up win number eight on the season, moving to 8-1 after six innings pitched, giving three runs on nine hits with one walk and four strikeouts. That eighth win for Baez allowed him to move alone into second in MACU's NAIA Era single season record book and now sits just one away from tying Keisy Portorreal (2018) for the one-year record.
- By getting the win, the Evangels were able to win the series against Southwestern Assemblies of God, marking their ninth series win of three or more games in the 2023 campaign.
GAME TWO
SCORE
- Mid-America Christian 14, SW Assemblies of God 4
- Mid-America Christian (33-10, 15-6 SAC)
- SW Assemblies of God (27-17, 11-10 SAC)
PITCHING DECISION
TOP PERFORMERS
- Caden Harris – 2-3, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 3 R, BB
- Noel McGarry-Doyle – 2-3, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, HBP
- Carlos Medina – 3-4, 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
- Cameron Brown – W, 6 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 9 SO
SCORING SUMMARY
- BTM 1st – SAGU – Andrew Ortiz doubled to left, 2 RBI; Craig Venable scored; Matt Daiy scored – SAGU 2, MACU 0
- BTM 1st – SAGU – Timothy Compomizzi singled to center, RBI; Andew Ortiz scored – SAGU 3, MACU 0
- TOP 2nd – MACU – German Sepulveda homered down rf line, RBI – SAGU 3, MACU 1
- BTM 2nd – SAGU – Matt Daiy singled to center, RBI; Armando Hernandez scored – SAGU 4, MACU 0
- TOP 3rd – MACU – Isaiah Leon homered to left, 2 RBI; Ryan Reed scored – SAGU 4, MACU 3
- TOP 5th – MACU – Caden Harris homered to center, RBI – MACU 4, SAGU 4
- TOP 5th – MACU – Noel McGarry-Doyle homered to right, 3 RBI; Ryan Reed scored; Carlos Medina scored – MACU 7, SAGU 4
- TOP 6th – MACU – Carlos Medina doubled to center, RBI; Caden Harris scored – MACU 8, SAGU 4
- TOP 7th – MACU – Julian Martinez hit-by-pitch, RBI; Noel McGarry-Doyle scored – MACU 9, SAGU 4
- TOP 7th – MACU – Caden Harris homered to right, 4 RBI; Julian Martinez scored; German Sepulveda scored; Makael Shaw scored – MACU 13, SAGU 4
- TOP 7th – MACU – Carlos Medina homered to right-center, RBI – MACU 14, SAGU 4
GAME NOTES
- Mid-America Christian scored its 14 runs on 11 hits while SAGU tallied its four runs on nine hits.
- Southwestern Assemblies of God held the early momentum, pushing across four runs through the first two frames. The Lions took a three-run lead after one before German Sepulveda trimmed the deficit to two when he hooked a solo homer just inside the right foul pole to cut it to 3-1 in the top of the second.
- However, the Lions got the run back in the bottom of the frame when Matt Daiy drove a single to center to extend the SAGU edge back to three at 4-1.
- Once again, MACU utilized the long ball to trim into the deficit as Isaiah Leon smashed his first home run of the season to left after Ryan Reed reached on a hit-by-pitch to make it a 4-3 game.
- In the top of the fifth, the Evangels made their move into the lead as Caden Harris led off the frame by smashing a home run over the centerfield fence to draw the game even at 4-4. After Carlos Medina reached on a double to center and Reed got on with an infield single, Noel McGarry-Doyle gave MACU the lead for good by launching his team-leading eighth home run over the right-center field wall, setting the score to 7-4.
- Medina gave MAU one more insurance run in the eight with an RBI two-bagger to center that scored Harris all the way from first after drawing a two-out walk, doubling up the MACU lead.
- In the seventh, the Evangels put the game completely out of reach for the Lions by throwing up a crooked six-run frame. After Julian Martinez was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to bring one in, Harris blew the game wide-open when he went opposite field with a grand slam to right to extend the lead to 13-4.
- In the very next at-bat, Carlos Medina came up with a historic at-bat as he slugged a solo shot to right-center to cap the scoring at 14-4. That sixth home run of the contest for MACU set a new record mark in MACU's NAIA Era single-game record book for homer, breaking the previous record of five that had been set eight times since 2007.
- After giving up four runs on six hits and a walk through the first two innings, MACU starter Cameron Brown settled down in a big way by tossing four straight scoreless innings, allowing only one hit the rest of the way. Brown tied his career-high strikeout mark with nine, matching his previous best set in a 9-3 loss to Baker (Kan.) on Feb. 19, 2022.
- The win for Brown allowed the junior to climb up MACU's NAIA Era career wins record book as his ninth moved him into a tie for seventh with Frensly Leito (2020-22) and Christian Hill (2013-15).
- Caden Harris put together a career day at the plate, slashing 2-for-3 with a pair of home runs with three runs scored to go with a career-best five RBIs. The two-homer outing marked the 31st time a MACU player had recorded multiple homers in the same game during the NAIA Era.
- With his two-double day, Carlos Medina also broke into MACU's single-season NAIA Era record book, moving into a tie for the 10th most in a year alongside James Frederick (2010) and Brian Carter (2010) with 14.
- By scoring twice for his 47th run of the season, Noel McGarry-Doyle also continued his ascent up MACU's NAIA Era single season record book. The sophomore outfielder now sits in a five-way tie for the fourth-most and needs just five more runs to catch Antonio Dorado (2018) for third.
- With the victory, Mid-America Christian completed the series sweep over SAGU, marking the first time the Evangels swept the Lions since 2019. It also marked the fifth series sweep of three games or more for MACU this season.
- By getting their 33rd win of the season, the Evangels also surpassed last season's NAIA Era record mark of 32 victories, an achievement MACU reached with a 19-10 win over Carolina (N.C.) at the NCCAA World Series on May 21, 2022.
- By improving to 15-6 in Sooner Athletic Conference play, the Evangels stayed neck-in-neck with No. 17 Texas Wesleyan and Science & Arts for the league lead as both teams hold a 13-5 SAC mark.
UP NEXT
- Mid-America Christian will return home on Friday to open a three-game series against Jarvis Christian (Texas). MACU will start the series with a twin-bill slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch at the MACU Baseball Field.
