ABILENE – Abilene Christian baseball dropped its 2019 season opener to Bryant 8-7 Friday night at Crutcher Scott Field. The Wildcats generated 13 base hits but stranded 14 men on base, including eight over the last 4.0 innings.
ACU trailed by as many as four runs (7-3) by the sixth inning, but clawed its way back into the game with three runs that inning thanks to a two-run home run from shortstop
Robert Salazar and a sacrifice fly to center by
Derek Scott, which was the first out of the frame. Reliever Craig Lacey then struck out
Luis Trevino for out No. 2 and then got
Riley Donahue to hit a bases-loaded grounder to second base.
Two innings later the Bulldogs extended their lead to 8-6 on a James Ciliento solo shot over the right-field wall, but the Wildcats countered by getting four of their first five runners on base via hit by pitch, error, single and intentional walk to get back within a run. Unfortunately for the home crowd, designated hitter
Koby Claborn - who homered back in the second inning - lined into an unassisted double play turned by Bryant second baseman Jake Gustin.
Reliever Nathan Wrighter began the ninth with two quick outs of pinch hitter
Caleb Kyle and Dunn, but after walking Matt Muñoz and surrendering a third single to Ryan Randle, the Bulldogs turned to first baseman Chris Wright, who got Scott on a game-ending ground ball to third base.
The win went to Bryant starter Tyler Mattison, who gave up three runs (two earned) on seven hits over 5.0 innings of work. He struck out three batters and walked one in leaving the game with a 5-3 lead.
Spencer Chirpich started for ACU and lasted 71 pitches through 4.0 innings. The Bulldogs scored twice off him in the first inning, and plated an unearned run in the second, but the Wildcats came back to tie the score in the third as Claborn's two-run blast to center field was followed by two Bulldog infield errors and a RBI ground out from Muñoz.
The score remained tied until the fourth when Sam Owens homered to right field off Chirpich, and in the fifth inning, the Bulldogs' Ryan Ward scored on Shane Kelly's fly ball to left field. Bryant added two additional runs in the sixth off reliever
Brock Barger, who allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and a walk through 2.0 innings. He also was charged with two failed pickoff attemtps.
Newcomer
Bryant Jordan allowed the Ciliento round-tripper in the eight.
Brennan Lewis then pitched 1.1 innings of scoreless baseball and ended his outing with a swinging strikeout of Owens.
Four Wildcats finished with a multi-hit game. Scott clubbed two doubles for both of his hits, and Randle finished 3-for-6.
The Wildcats and Bulldogs resume their three-game series Saturday at 2 p.m.
