ABILENE – Senior
Brock Barger pitched 6.0 scoreless innings with three strikeouts and six runners left on base, but the Abilene Christian offense was limited to three base hits by five UT Arlington pitchers in a 2-0 loss Tuesday night at Crutcher Scott Field.
The Wildcats slipped back to .500 (4-4) with the defeat, while the Mavericks improved to 6-4.
Barger whiffed two batters in the first inning, and in the second frame he left a runner at third base after getting three consecutive groundouts following Zac Cook's leadoff single. The third inning was equally adventurous as a one-out error that placed runners at the corners was followed by a beautifully spun 3-6-3 double play by first baseman
Riley Donahue and shortstop
Robert Salazar.
Barger later stranded runners at second base in the fourth and fifth innings, and in the sixth he followed a one-out walk with a strikeout of Cook and fielder's choice to shortstop.
Hunter Spaeth relieved Barger in the seventh and soon experienced some dramatics of his own as pinch runner Aaron Funk reached third base with two outs; however, leadoff man Conner Aube popped up to Donahue in foul territory to end the inning.
The game remained scoreless until two outs in the eighth inning when designated hitter
Anthony Dominguez drove a two-out, 1-1 pitch over the wall in right field. UTA then added an unearned insurance run in the ninth when left fielder David Renning scored on pinch hitter Justin Marino's single to center field.
Marino's hit resulted in a second call to the bullpen with
Brennan Lewis finishing the ninth with a fly ball to right field.
ACU counted two doubles among its three base hits.
Dalton Dunn doubled with two outs for the Wildcats' first base hit in the third inning, and in the eighth inning, center fielder Matt Muñoz doubled high of the wall in right field only to be left at third base as reliever Tristan Tom struck out Dunn and got
Ryne Randle to ground out to second base.
Derek Scott legged out a two-out infield single in the fourth for ACU's second hit of the game, and to begin the sixth inning, Dunn reached first base on a wild pitch. Dunn, unfortunately, only got as far as second after a stolen base as game-winner Michael Wong came back to strike out Randle and induced consecutive grounds outs off the bats of
Dalon Farkas and
Luis Trevino.
David Moffat started and surrendered one base hit in three innings for UTA. He was followed to the mound by Cade Winquest (2.0 IP), Wong (2.0), Tom (1.0) and closer Andrew Gross, who scored his third save of the spring with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
The Wildcats return to action Wednesday for a 6:30 p.m. home game vs. Eastern Michigan.
