St. Thomas opened up SCAC Play with 2 wins against Texas Lutheran this Thursday evening. Game One was a pitchers duel with Landon Murray getting his first complete game shutout of the year, and Game Two featured extra innings with St. Thomas coming out on top 8-7.
Game 1: UST 2 TLU 0
St. Thomas wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, scoring both of their runs in the first inning. Kyle Bearden crossed the plate on a passed ball, and Mason Seay scored on Dillon McKee's groundout.
From there, it was a defensive battle, with neither team able to generate much offense. St. Thomas starter Landon Murray was stellar on the mound, tossing a complete game shutout. He allowed just five hits and two walks while striking out seven batters.
Texas Lutheran's JT Taylor also pitched well, going the distance and allowing only two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out six.
Despite a late push from Texas Lutheran, St. Thomas held on for the win, securing a valuable victory on the road.
Game 2: UST 8 TLU 7
St. Thomas got off to a quick start with Timothy Mansell launching a solo home run in the first inning to take an early lead. However, Texas Lutheran quickly responded with Adam Peavy's RBI single, knotting the score at 1-1.
St. Thomas regained the lead in the third inning with Alex Trinh's RBI groundout and Timothy Mansell's RBI double, pushing ahead 3-1. But Texas Lutheran rallied in the fourth inning, tying the game at 3-3 with Hayden Kesselring's two-run triple.
In the sixth inning, Texas Lutheran surged ahead, scoring four runs highlighted by Cole Cravens' two-run single, taking a 7-3 lead. St. Thomas battled back in the eighth inning, capitalizing on errors to tie the game at 7-7, courtesy of Gabe Garner's RBI double and Mason Seay's RBI double.
The game remained deadlocked until the 10th inning when St. Thomas capitalized on a Texas Lutheran error, allowing Jarod Smith to reach base and ultimately score the winning run, securing the 8-7 victory.
Kameron Craig earned the win for St. Thomas, pitching two scoreless innings in relief. Brendan Beard started strong for Texas Lutheran, striking out 14 batters over 7.1 innings, but Nolan McInvale took the loss after giving up two unearned runs in the 10th inning.
With this win, St. Thomas improved to 7-12 overall and 2-0 in conference play, while Texas Lutheran dropped to 11-8 overall and 0-2 in conference play.
