SAN ANTONIO - Abilene Christian baseball totaled six hits Saturday, but all starting pitcher
Aaron Mason needed were two as the Wildcats held on to beat Incarnate Word for the second straight night, 1-0, at Sullivan Field.
In picking up his sixth win of the spring, Mason scattered five hits over 8.1 innings with five strikeouts and only left the game after the Cardinals put runners at the corners with one out in the ninth. Senior closer
Nick Palacios then came in to secure his seventh save of the season and second of the weekend after getting clean-up batter Brance Kahle to ground into a game-ending 4-3 double play on a 1-0 pitch.
Tonight's rain-delayed victory gave the Wildcats (16-31, 8-18 Southland) a series win over UIW (13-37, 5-21 UIW) and Mason a winning record against the Southland Conference at 4-3. In nine starts against league opposition, the Broken Arrow, Okla., native delivered seven quality starts and only once allowed more than three runs. He's also pitched past the eighth inning in each of his last two appearances with no walks in posting a 4.3 strikeout-to-walk ratio (30/7).
Mason's ERA vs. the Southland is a stellar 2.13 as he limited league hitters to a .227 batting average.
Offensively, the Wildcats sufficed on two runs Friday night and only needed one this evening, which came in the first inning when designated hitter
Heath Beasley singled in first baseman
Russell Crippen from third base.
Crippen led off the ball game with a double down the right-field line as part of a 2-for-5 night at the plate and moved to third on a ground ball from left fielder
Derek Scott.
The Wildcats threatened to score several more times off starter John Shull (2-7) and three UIW relievers but left the bases loaded in the second and stranded runners in scoring position in each inning from the fourth to eighth.
Second baseman
Aaron Draper reached base all four times this evening and twice was left at third and twice more at second base. He was 1-for-2 with a double and two walks, while Beasley matched Crippen's hit total with the first-inning single and a seventh-inning double.
Mason gave up three hits, including two doubles, in the early goings; however, he was close to unhittable the rest of the way, retiring 13 straight batters from the end the fourth to the start of the ninth.
The Wildcats and Cardinals are expected to wrap their series Sunday at 1 p.m. weather permitting.
