By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
After spotting Emporia State a 7-0 lead, the Fort Hays State baseball team used a pair of home runs from Isaiah Ural, one home run from Cesar Saavedra and five innings of scoreless relief from Trevor Baugh to come from behind and defeat the Hornets Sunday afternoon (April 21) at Larks Park, 10-7. The win gives the Tigers (24-21, 11-19 MIAA) their first series win over Emporia State (19-27, 9-21 MIAA) since 2004.
With one series remaining in conference play, the Tigers currently sit in a three-way tie for seventh in the league standings. FHSU, Northwest Missouri State and Northeastern State are one game behind Rogers State in sixth and two games in front of Newman, Missouri Western and Emporia State in a tie for 10th. The top eight teams in the standings at the end of the regular season advance to the MIAA Championship Tournament.
Andrew Hansen got the start for the Tigers and retired the side in order in the first before finding trouble in the second, allowing three runs on two hits and three walks. Brett Jacobs got out of the inning with a pop up before surrendering four runs on four hits in the third, giving ESU a seven-run lead.
ESU starter Ian Lanik retired the side in order in both the first and second innings before issuing Kyle Morrella leadoff walk in the third. Sebastian Burgos followed with a single before Luis Ayala laid down a sacrifice bunt. The Tigers closed within 7-1 on an RBI groundout from Saavedra before Ural crushed his first home run of the game, sending a 1-0 pitch soaring to left center where it bounced off the top of the wall and over the fence.
Brady Kreutzer followed with a single before the left fielder sprinted around the bases and scored from first on a bloop single from Elliott Herrmann, helping the Tigers close within 7-4.
Jacobs worked around a pair of walks in the fourth inning to post a scoreless inning before the Tigers had two men on with zero outs in the home half of the inning but were unable to score. Jacobs then allowed the first two batters to reach in the fifth, prompting the Tigers to go to Baugh. The Tigers got the first out of the inning when Ayala gunned down a would-be base stealer before Baugh escaped the jam with two flyouts.
The Tigers closed within 7-5 in the bottom of the fifth when Ural tallied his second home run of the game, this time a no-doubter to left center.
Baugh continued to puzzle the Hornet lineup for the remainder of the game, tossing five scoreless innings without giving up a hit. He struck out six batters and scattered three walks across the five frames.
Fort Hays State took the lead in the sixth when a pitch hit leadoff hitter Trey DeGarmo. Morrell followed with his second walk of the game, prompting the Hornets to go back to the bullpen. Ayala came through with a two-RBI double that bounced just inside the third-base bag and proceeded into the left-field corner, tying things up at seven.
Next up was Saavedra, who hammered his third home run of the season to left field on a 2-2 pitch to put the Tigers in front, 9-7.
With Baugh dealing on the rubber, the Tigers came up with a big insurance run in the bottom of the eighth when Saavedra and Ural led off with back-to-back singles. Saavedra went first-to-third on Ural’s base knock, allowing the leadoff man to score on a sacrifice fly from Herrmann.
ESU’s leadoff hitter reached on an error in the top of the ninth before Baugh issued a one-out walk, bringing the tying run to the plate. The righty was not phased, however, with Baugh (3-2) retiring the next hitter on a lazy fly ball to center before completing the win with his sixth strikeout of the game.
Five Tigers recorded multi-hit games, including three from Ural and two each from Saavedra, Kreutzer, Herrmann and Burgos. Ural and Saavedra each drove in three runs, while Ural, Saavedra and Morrell all scored twice.
The Tigers will wrap up the regular season with four games on the road next week beginning Tuesday (April 23, 3 p.m.) at William Jewell before FHSU travels to Pittsburg State over the weekend (April 26-28) for the final conference series of the year.
Saturday
The Fort Hays State baseball team fell in extra innings against Emporia State on Saturday (April 20), losing 7-5. The Tigers (23-21, 10-19 MIAA) tied the score twice in the final two innings thanks to a two-run home run from Jose Cintron in the eighth inning and Luis Ayala scoring on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth, but the Hornets (19-26, 9-20 MIAA) managed to come away with the win in the 10th inning.
Tiger starter Rafael Espinoza was shaky out of the gate, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk in the first before surrendering a solo home run in the top of the second inning. The redshirt-freshman quickly found his groove, however, scattering four hits over the next 5.1 innings.
Fort Hays State left two men on base in each of the first and second innings before Isaiah Ural trimmed the deficit to 3-1 with a solo home run to left center. ESU’s Graham Brunner retired the next nine batters he faced before Elliott Herrmann made the score 3-2 with a line-drive missile that cleared the fence in left field for the first baseman’s 14th home run of the season.
A one-out hit-by-pitch helped Emporia State manufacture a run on a double steal in the top of the eighth, stretching the lead to 4-2, before the Tigers tied things up in the home half of the inning. Brady Kreutzerreached on an infield single, extending his hitting streak to 16 games, before Jose Cintron stepped to the plate with two outs. The designated hitter turned on a 1-2 pitch, crushing his second home run of the weekend soaring over the wall in left to tie the score at four.
The Hornets took advantage of a walk in the top of the ninth, later scoring on a single to regain the lead, 5-4. Luis Ayala led off the ninth with a two hopper to third base, where the Hornet defender dropped the ball as he tried to throw across the diamond. Ayala moved up 90 feet on a Sebastian Burgos sacrifice bunt before Ural lifted a two-out base hit to left, putting runners on the corners. Ayala then scampered home on a wild pitch, leveling the score at five before ESU got out of the inning to send things to extras.
Three walks, two wild pitches, one passed ball and one double helped Emporia State scrape together a pair of runs in the 10th. Kreutzer then led off the bottom of the inning with his second infield single of the game, but Hornet reliever Trent Wartsler finished off the win by retiring the next three batters in order.
Espinoza worked 7.1 innings, allowing four runs on eight hits and four walks while striking out four batters. Dylan Rinker got the Tigers out of the eighth inning, walking one and allowing one hit in 0.2 innings of scoreless relief. Landyn Sterling worked the ninth, striking out two and allowing one run on one hit and one walk. Tanner Vaughn (3-2) took the loss after allowing two runs on one hit and two walks while striking out one batter. Spencer Maley finished the 10th, striking out two batters and walking one.
Ural, Kreutzer and Cintron all had two hits each, while five different Tigers came around to score a run.
Friday
Home runs from Elliott Herrmann and Jose Cintron and a season-high 17 strikeouts from the Tiger pitching staff helped the Fort Hays State baseball team defeat Emporia State in Friday’s series opener at Larks Park, 5-4 (April 19). The Tigers are now 23-20 on the season and 10-18 in MIAA play, while the Hornets dip to 18-26 on the year and 8-20 in league action.
Junior righty Ty Riley got things going for the Tigers out of the gate, retiring the side in order in the first and working around a walk in the second to retire six of the first seven batters he faced. The Tiger bats totaled three hits in the first inning and another in the second, but were unable to push across a run.
The visitors took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third when the Hornets manufactured a run on two walks and two hits before the final out was recorded at the plate following a perfect throw from Brady Kreutzer in left field.
The Tigers answered right back with a five-run bottom of the inning. Isaiah Ural opened the run with his second hit of the game before Elliott Herrmann sent a moon shot soaring out of the park in deep left center, putting the Tigers up 2-1. Kreutzer followed with a double to right before Zane Knox worked his first of three walks on the night. Jose Cintron then delivered a three-run home run sailing over the wall in right for his third long ball of the season, giving FHSU a 5-1 advantage.
Riley worked out of trouble in the fourth, striking out the side while leaving men on second and third, before adding two more strikeouts in the fifth. Fort Hays State had baserunners in each of the first seven innings, but were only able to scrape across runs in the third. The Tigers left two men on base three times and left the bases loaded in the sixth.
The Hornets trimmed the lead in half in the sixth, scoring two runs on three walks and one hit. Tanner Vaughn came out of the bullpen to relieve Riley, allowing one run on two hits and three walks while striking out two batters.
Spencer Maley was next out of the pen, with the lefty working efficiently in the seventh and eighth innings before finding trouble in the ninth. Maley retired the first five batters he faced before allowing a lone single in the eighth, but quickly got out of the frame with another strikeout. The Hornets closed within one with a leadoff home run in the top of the ninth before Maley walked a pair with one out, forcing the Tigers to go back to the bullpen in Dylan Rinker.
Rinker came on to slam the door, recording the final two outs via strikeout to earn his first save of the season.
Riley (4-2) earned the win after striking out eight batters over 5.0 innings of work, surrendering two runs on four hits and five walks. Maley struck out five batters in 2.1 innings of relief, allowing one run on two hits and two walks.
Seven Tigers recorded at least one hit, helping FHSU to 13 base knocks on the day. Cesar Saavedra and Ural both had three hits, with Kreutzer and Cintron both adding two hits.