ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – No. 18 Henderson State (11-0, 3-0 GAC) remained unbeaten as it swept a GAC doubleheader over Oklahoma Baptist on Saturday.
The Reddies rallied for a 10-9 game-one win before securing a 6-4 decision against the green and gold in game two.
GAME ONE
Like it has done virtually all season, Oklahoma Baptist (4-6, 0-3) got off to a good start in the early innings. This time against Henderson, the Bison attained a 5-0 lead.
In the first,
Alex Schroeder and
Ramon Gomez each drove in runs to push OBU ahead 2-0. A frame later,
Jose Parga scored
Kade Self on a groundout before
Walker Keller and
Dan Pruitt socked two-out, run-scoring doubles. Those hits gave the green and gold a 5-0 lead.
However, over the next inning and a half, the hosts would pull to within one, 6-5. In the third, Bryson Haskins recorded an RBI groundout which was HSU's second run of the game. A few batters later, Logan Cowart drove in two, Pate Fullerton and Colton Patterson, with a single. Those latter two players had advanced into scoring position following a wild pitch.
Then in the fourth, David Vilches' two-run homer pushed Henderson in front, 7-6.
The Bison bats continued to stay hot though and brought the team back. In fact, a three-run fifth inning, all courtesy of a slam by Self, which also scored
Chris Cook and Gomez, gave OBU a 9-7 lead.
Remarkably, OBU didn't get another run after that. In fact, Henderson pitching only allowed one Bison to get into scoring over the final four frames.
For the Reddies, they tallied three runs over the seventh and eighth to retake the lead for good. In the eighth, a two-out home run from Patterson pushed HSU ahead 10-9.
GAME TWO
A five-run fourth inning helped the Reddies attain a lead it would never relinquish.
Before that, the Bison got the game's first lead again. In the first, Pruitt drove home
Isiah Lissade with a grounder to short. Over the next trio of innings, though, Henderson pitcher Ryan Galvan didn't allow a hit and helped the hosts keep the score at 1-0.
Then in the fifth, the Reddies got going. A two-out walk was issued to Fullerton and that turned the tide for HSU. The next three batters got hits including a three-run homer by Vilches which gave the hosts a 5-1 lead.
OBU did fight back to pull the contest within one, 5-4. A Parga homer in the fifth made the tally 5-2 before a wild pitch and error in the sixth scored Self and Schroeder. Unfortunately for OBU, that would be the last of the scoring.
Henderson added one more in the home half of the sixth before Blake Pennington got the save in the seventh. He induced two groundouts and one flyout that frame.
The Bison will look to get back on track when they host Ouachita on Feb. 25 at Bobby Cox Field at Ford Park.
