Wildcats drop season-opener

Friday, February 11

Kingsville, TX

3 pm

Abilene Christian

Texas A&M - Kingsville

2/11/2011 8:30:26 PM | Baseball

KINGSVILLE – One of the biggest question marks for the ACU Wildcats going into the 2011 baseball season was the state of their bullpen.

Those questions weren't answered Friday as four relief pitchers combined to give up 10 runs – including nine in the seventh inning – as the No. 6 Wildcats dropped their season-opener, 14-13, at Texas A&M-Kingsville.

The Wildcats (0-1 overall and 0-1 in the Lone Star Conference) and Javelinas (3-1, 1-0) will be back to action at Nolan Ryan Field on Saturday at 1 p.m. for the first game of a doubleheader.

The Wildcats were cruising through 6 1/2 innings, leading 13-5 thanks to a three-run second inning, six-run third and four-run seventh inning. Starting pitcher Zach Sneed pitched five innings, scattering six hits and allowing four runs (three earned) and appeared to be in line to pick up the win.

But when ACU head coach Britt Bonneau turned the game over to the bullpen, the Javelinas capitalized. They scored one run in the sixth and then tacked on nine in the bottom of the seventh to take a 14-13 lead.

The nine-run seventh was aided by more by the ACU pitchers than the Kingsville offense. With the bases loaded, the Wildcats walked in four runs and plated three more via hit batters. The Javelinas only scored two runs with hits and they exited the inning with a 14-13 lead.

The Wildcats didn't mount much of a charge in their last two at-bats as they dropped their season-opener.

Duncan Blades, Will Calhoun, Cameron Watten and Cameron Bankston each had two hits for the Wildcats, while Blades drove in three runs and Iam Tomkins drove in two runs for ACU.