CLARKSVILLE, Ark. – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor baseball team split a Friday doubleheader with University of the Ozarks, earning a 7-6 win before falling 14-8 to the Eagles. UMHB went to 13-8 on the season and 8-15 in conference play after the split.
Kaden deBerardinis got on base with a walk in the first inning before scoring on an RBI single from
Rhett Grosz. UMHB added two more runs later in the inning when
Carson Hagan and Grosz both scored on an error. The Eagles scored two runs in the bottom of that frame off a pair of single home runs, cutting the gap to one. UMHB had runners in scoring position in the second but Ozarks got out of the inning unscathed then scored the equalizer in the bottom of the second for a 3-3 knot.
Ozarks took a two-run lead in the third inning and stayed on top until the fifth when UMHB scored four runs. deBerardinis singled to open the inning then advanced to second on an error.
Rhett Grosz followed that with a home run to right centerfield, scoring Guerin and deBerardinis for a 6-5 lead. UMHB added one more run in the bottom of the inning, scoring
Carson Hagan on a sacrifice fly to put the Cru up by two.
Acierni pitched shutout frames in the fifth and sixth to keep UMHB's two-run lead.
Nicklas Fenner entered the mound in the seventh, giving up one run before pitching out of a bases-loaded jam to keep the Cru's 7-6 win. Acierni threw six innings with five runs and nine hits allowed. Grosz led the Cru two hits, four RBI and two runs while Hagan and deBerardinis also added a pair of runs. UMHB totaled seven runs on seven hits with no errors while the Eagles had six runs on 12 hits with four errors.
Hayden Guerin opened game two with a home run to left center, putting UMHB up 1-0 after the first.
Carson Hagan followed that in the second, scoring on a single from
Elijah Rodriguez for a two-run lead. Ozarks responded in the bottom of that inning, scoring two runs on a home run from Phillip Drilling and two on a double from Jackson Baker.
Ozarks added four more off five hits and one error in the fourth inning, taking an 8-2 lead on the Cru and tacking on two more fifth-inning runs for a 10-2 margin.
Blake Harmon added a run for the Cru in the sixth, scoring on an RBI single from
Drake Herrera. The Cru added two more runs in the seventh, scoring on singles from
Hunter Jones and Rodriguez. The Eagles put up another big inning in the eighth, scoring four more runs on five hits to lead 14-5. UMHB fought back in the ninth, scoring two runs on a single from Jones and one on an error. The Cru wasn't able to close the deficit, falling 14-8 in game two.
Five Crusaders recorded two hits each while Guerin, Hagan and Jones each added two runs. Rodriguez and Jones led the Cru with two RBI each while Guerin and Herrera both added one. Five Crusaders combined on the mound for the Cru with
Bryce Farlander taking the loss. Farlander went two innings with four runs allowed. UMHB totaled eight runs on 11 hits with two errors while the Eagles had 14 runs on 21 hits with four errors.
UMHB closes the series on Saturday, April 22
nd with a noon single game in Clarksville.