Sunday, May 3
Sacramento, Calif.
12:30 p.m. (CT)
Abilene Christian
23-24, 6-6
13
at
11
Sacramento State
22-27, 6-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene Christian | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 12 | 0 |
| Sacramento State | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 12 | 1 |
Photo by: Kaylee Kahn
Miesse and Jones Come Up Clutch, Cardenas Homers Twice in Extra-Inning Win
5/3/2026 6:44:00 PM | Baseball
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Maddox Miesse hit a solo home run in the ninth inning to push the game to extras, and Ryan Jones came through with a go-ahead two-run homer as Abilene Christian baseball secured a 13-11 win over Sacramento State on Sunday. The Wildcats picked up their second straight conference series victory, doing so in 10 innings at John Smith Field.
ACU plays its final midweek game of the season when it hosts former Western Athletic Conference and Southland Conference foe UT Rio Grande Valley at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The Wildcats will celebrate The Forces Unite, presented by United Supermarkets, at Crutcher Scott Field at Bullock Brothers Ballpark.
The Wildcats banged out four home runs in the roller coaster matchup, including a pair in the first two frames by slugger Diego Cardenas. With 20 long balls this season, he retook the WAC lead with Utah Valley's Hunter Katschke. Cardenas paced the conference last year with 19 homers. Each of his three hits were for extra bases as he drove in five runs, scored three and drew a pair of walks.
Cardenas leads the WAC with 59 runs batted in and is second in slugging percentage and OPS. He's collected multiple hits in 15 games this season and has tallied multiple RBIs in a team-high 12 contests. Cardenas has reached base safely in 14 straight games.
Miesse joined Cardenas with a 3-for-4 performance and had perhaps the biggest hit of the game. Down 11-10 with two outs in the top of the ninth, Miesse sent the first pitch he saw over the batter's eye for a game-tying solo shot. He homered for the second day in a row and raised his batting average to .356.
ACU made the most of its new opportunity, with Cardenas drawing a walk to lead off the 10th inning. Jones followed with a no-doubt blast to right field that pushed the Wildcats in front, 13-11. Freshman Baron Mannis faced the minimum in the bottom of the frame, earning his second save of the series.
ACU picked up its third win in five extra-inning affairs this season and moved into a three-way tie for third place in the WAC at 6-6, joining Utah Tech and Sacramento State.
Nick Arias extended his hitting streak to nine games with a 2-for-4 showing, scoring two runs with a pair of walks. He has 15 hits during his streak, raising his batting average nearly 40 points to .294. Arias has reached safely in 17 straight games and has 15 multi-hit performances.
JT Thompson tied the game at 6 in the fifth inning with an RBI double, elevating his hitting streak to 11 games. He has also made it on base in 17 games in a row.
Collin Adams was credited with the win while matching his career long with three innings.
For the second time in the series, the Wildcats grabbed an early advantage before an out was recorded. Cardenas picked up his first home run with a line drive to right-center field, giving ACU a 2-0 lead in the first. Sacramento State responded in the home half of the inning with a pair of three-run homers to move in front, 6-2.
The Wildcats had an answer in the next inning in the form of another Cardenas blast. Brady Gray and Miesse singled, and with two outs, Cardenas went yard to the deepest part of the park.
ACU retook the lead with a three-run fifth inning. Thompson's game-tying RBI double brought home Arias before Gavin Brzozowski delivered a pinch-hit RBI groundout. Two batters later, Gray recorded a sacrifice fly to make it an 8-6 ballgame.
Cardenas and Arias led off the sixth inning with a double and a single, respectively. Cardenas raced home on a wild pitch, and a fielding error with two outs allowed Arias to score, growing the lead to 10-6.
The Hornets mounted a comeback with five runs over the sixth and seventh innings, taking an 11-10 edge into the ninth. Miesse sent the game to extras with his fourth homer of the season, while ACU took the lead on Jones' fourth, too.
ACU plays its final midweek game of the season when it hosts former Western Athletic Conference and Southland Conference foe UT Rio Grande Valley at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The Wildcats will celebrate The Forces Unite, presented by United Supermarkets, at Crutcher Scott Field at Bullock Brothers Ballpark.
The Wildcats banged out four home runs in the roller coaster matchup, including a pair in the first two frames by slugger Diego Cardenas. With 20 long balls this season, he retook the WAC lead with Utah Valley's Hunter Katschke. Cardenas paced the conference last year with 19 homers. Each of his three hits were for extra bases as he drove in five runs, scored three and drew a pair of walks.
Cardenas leads the WAC with 59 runs batted in and is second in slugging percentage and OPS. He's collected multiple hits in 15 games this season and has tallied multiple RBIs in a team-high 12 contests. Cardenas has reached base safely in 14 straight games.
Miesse joined Cardenas with a 3-for-4 performance and had perhaps the biggest hit of the game. Down 11-10 with two outs in the top of the ninth, Miesse sent the first pitch he saw over the batter's eye for a game-tying solo shot. He homered for the second day in a row and raised his batting average to .356.
ACU made the most of its new opportunity, with Cardenas drawing a walk to lead off the 10th inning. Jones followed with a no-doubt blast to right field that pushed the Wildcats in front, 13-11. Freshman Baron Mannis faced the minimum in the bottom of the frame, earning his second save of the series.
ACU picked up its third win in five extra-inning affairs this season and moved into a three-way tie for third place in the WAC at 6-6, joining Utah Tech and Sacramento State.
Nick Arias extended his hitting streak to nine games with a 2-for-4 showing, scoring two runs with a pair of walks. He has 15 hits during his streak, raising his batting average nearly 40 points to .294. Arias has reached safely in 17 straight games and has 15 multi-hit performances.
JT Thompson tied the game at 6 in the fifth inning with an RBI double, elevating his hitting streak to 11 games. He has also made it on base in 17 games in a row.
Collin Adams was credited with the win while matching his career long with three innings.
For the second time in the series, the Wildcats grabbed an early advantage before an out was recorded. Cardenas picked up his first home run with a line drive to right-center field, giving ACU a 2-0 lead in the first. Sacramento State responded in the home half of the inning with a pair of three-run homers to move in front, 6-2.
The Wildcats had an answer in the next inning in the form of another Cardenas blast. Brady Gray and Miesse singled, and with two outs, Cardenas went yard to the deepest part of the park.
ACU retook the lead with a three-run fifth inning. Thompson's game-tying RBI double brought home Arias before Gavin Brzozowski delivered a pinch-hit RBI groundout. Two batters later, Gray recorded a sacrifice fly to make it an 8-6 ballgame.
Cardenas and Arias led off the sixth inning with a double and a single, respectively. Cardenas raced home on a wild pitch, and a fielding error with two outs allowed Arias to score, growing the lead to 10-6.
The Hornets mounted a comeback with five runs over the sixth and seventh innings, taking an 11-10 edge into the ninth. Miesse sent the game to extras with his fourth homer of the season, while ACU took the lead on Jones' fourth, too.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Adams, Collin (2-3)
L: Rogalski, Elijah (1-2)
S: Mannis, Baron (3)
Batting:
2B: Cardenas, Diego 1 ; Arias, Nick 1 ; Thompson, JT 1
HR: Cardenas, Diego 2 ; Jones, Ryan 1 ; Miesse, Maddox 1
RBI: Cardenas, Diego 5 ; Jones, Ryan 2 ; Thompson, JT 1 ; Brzozowski, Gavin 1 ; Gray, Brady 1 ; Miesse, Maddox 1
SF: Gray, Brady 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Payne, Zandt 1 ; Cardenas, Diego 3 ; McGarrh, Cade 1 ; Arias, Nick 2 ; Jones, Ryan 2 ; Thompson, JT 1 ; Gray, Brady 1 ; Miesse, Maddox 2
HBP: Jones, Ryan 1 ; Ladusau, Brady 1
Batting:
2B: Harry, Sam 1
HR: Poturnak, Jakob 1 ; Sewell, Cameron 1
RBI: Dessens, Erick 2 ; Poturnak, Jakob 3 ; Sewell, Cameron 3 ; Ott, Brett 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Harry, Sam 1 ; Ellis, Ryan 1 ; Poturnak, Jakob 1 ; Pimentel-Guerrero, L 1 ; Jeremiah, Jace 3 ; Sewell, Cameron 2 ; Beasley, Nikhil 1 ; Ott, Brett 1
SB: Sewell, Cameron 1
HBP: Pimentel-Guerrero, L 1 ; Ott, Brett 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
3
H
3
RBI
5
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
1
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
5
R
2
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
LHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
OF/LHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
C
/ BaseballINF/OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballUTL
/ Baseball
INF
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