TYLER, Texas – After being limited to just three runs in a pair of road defeats on Friday, the LeTourneau University baseball team broke through for eight runs while getting eight innings from starting pitcher
Raul Martinez in an 8-2 win over the University of Texas-Tyler at Irwin Field in Tyler, Texas on Saturday, March 23rd.
LETU improves to 14-9 overall while the Patriots see a five-game winning streak snapped to fall to 13-10 overall on the year.
The YellowJackets would be able to avoid a slow start that had plagued them in both games on Friday as the first two batters of the game would reach base as part of a four-hit, three-run top of the first inning to give LETU a 3-0 lead after one inning of play. LeTourneau would then add two more runs in the top of the second with a
Weston McKinley RBI double to score
Jacob Faubion who would reach with a hit-by-pitch before a stolen base and
Bryce Brueggemeyer RBI single made the score 5-0.
Just three hits would be had between the two squads from the bottom of the second inning until the top of the seventh as the Patriots would manage to take advantage of a leadoff triple in the bottom of the fourth to plate one run and add a second run in the bottom of the fifth to cut the lead to 5-2. The three-run lead would be pushed back out to five by the YellowJackets in the top of the seventh with a leadoff walk by
Lee Hosie along with a one-out Brueggemeyer walk would allow for a
Jacob Jones RBI single and wild pitch to plate the two runs on just one hit.
LeTourneau would add one final run in the top of the ninth on a
Cody Lee sacrifice fly as Texas-Tyler never would pose a serious threat to mount a comeback in the game to allow LETU to avoid a series sweep.
Martinez would shut down a potent Patriot offense throughout the contest, holding UTT to under three runs for just the fifth time this season by any team. The freshman would toss eight innings and allow just two runs on four hits while striking out three batters on 88 pitches.
LETU made the most of their nine-hit and six walk performance as
Weston McKinley and Jones led the YellowJackets with two hits each. Jones would also drive in a game-high two runs while Hosie and Brueggemeyer drew two walks each.
What's Next?
LeTourneau returns home to kick off a four-game homestand on Tuesday, March 26th with a 7 p.m. home game against Centenary College. The game will be the second of a two-game home-and-home series between the teams this season, with LETU snagging a 7-3 win in Shreveport, LA on February 20th.
