ABILENE – Senior pitchers
Jonathan Nicholson and
Brennan Lewis allowed just three base hits, and
Luis Trevino and
Seth Watts each hit home runs during Abilene Christian's 6-2 rubber-game win over Northwestern State Sunday at Crutcher Scott Field.
The Wildcats improved to 9-7 overall and 2-1 vs. the Southland Conference with the win, while the Demons – last year's league tournament champions – slipped to 7-6 and 1-2.
Nicholson won his second game of the year thanks to seven strikeouts and ability to escape a fifth-inning jam with runners in scoring position and two outs. NSU cut ACU's lead to 3-2 that frame on Larson Fontenot's RBI single, but Nicholson prevented any further damage by getting leadoff man Sam Taylor to pop up to catcher
Lane Bourland at the backstop netting.
Nicholson went on to allow base runners in the sixth and seventh with neither advancing past second base, and in the eighth, ACU turned the game over to Lewis who earned his fourth save of the spring by retiring all six batters he faced. Lewis tossed 24 pitches, recorded one strikeout, and made the game's final out, catching an infield pop up off the bat of pinch hitter Austin Stegall.
NSU shortstop Caleb Ricca got his side on the board first with a first-inning home run to right field, but Nicholson struck out the Demon's No. 3 and 4 batters and the Wildcats' offense immediately countered with Trevino's two-run blast to center field. Left fielder
Dalon Farkas tripled ahead of Trevino to begin ACU's at-bat, and
Derek Scott later doubled to right field and scored four batters later on
Seth Watts' RBI single.
Scott again would double in the second inning for his sixth career two-double game; however, that would be the Wildcats' last hit – a span of 17 batters – until the Abilene product led off the eighth with a single to left-center field.
Koby Claborn advanced Scott to second base on a fly ball to deep center, and with two outs, Scott stole third base for his fourth theft of the season. Shortstop
Robert Salazar made it a 4-2 game with his RBI single up the middle and Watts put the game on ice with his second career home run – a two-run shot hit over the wall in right field.
Watts today went 2-for-3 with a run and three RBI.
Nathan Jones started for NSU and struck out seven through 6.0 innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits. Kyle Swanson pitched a scoreless seventh and started the eighth, only to be pulled in favor of Jose Vasquez after allowing the leadoff single to Scott.
The Wildcats return to action Wednesday with a 6:30 p.m. game at Baylor that kicks off an eight-game road trip. ACU will go to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi next weekend (March 15-17), and then play at Southeastern La. (March 22-24) and UT Arlington (March 27).
