Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
ODESSA, Texas — Freshman left-hander Cooper Hamilton threw 4 1/3 innings of two-hit relief to pick up his first college win, working around a walk and a hit batsman with two out in the bottom of the ninth, as Eastern New Mexico University’s baseball team took the opener of a four-game series on Friday with an 8-6 Lone Star Conference victory over Texas-Permian Basin.
The teams were slated to play nine-inning conference games on Saturday and today before finishing off a twin bill after the latter with a seven-inning non-league contest.
The Greyhounds (2-7, 2-7 LSC) never trailed. They strung together five consecutive hits with two outs and a runner at third in the top of the fifth, scoring four times for a 7-2 cushion.
Permian Basin answered with three in the bottom half to chase ENMU starter Josh Lewis — a two-run home run by designated hitter Nick Hernandez and a two-out solo shot by third baseman Devin Ferrari — and closed to 7-6 an inning latter against Hamilton (1-1) on an RBI single by Collin Fabio.
But with runners at the corners and no one out, Hamilton picked Fabio off in a rundown and ENMU first baseman Nick Schifftner threw home to get the Falcons’ Michael Claperto trying to score from third for an unusual 1-3-6-3-2 double play. Hamilton then fanned the Falcons’ Garret Thornton to end the frame.
After issuing a leadoff walk in the seventh, Hamilton retired the next eight hitters before running into two-out trouble in the ninth. With the potential tying runs on base, he slipped a called third strike past UTPB’s Jay Desoto to end it.
ENMU outhit the Falcons 10-8 and got hits from eight players, with right fielder Nicholas Tamez going 2-for-5 with a pair of RBIs and third baseman Matthew Kory finishing 2-for-3. Thornton had three hits and Claperto two for the Falcons.
ENMU drops opening softball twin bill — At Commerce, Texas, ENMU nearly got out of the first inning unscathed in Friday’s season-opening Lone Star Conference twin bill against fifth-ranked Texas A&M-Commerce. But the Greyhounds just couldn’t get that third out.
Alyssa LeBlanc hit a two-run single, Chealsea Slider followed with a two-run double and before the inning was over, the Lions had plated eight runs en route to a 12-0 victory.
Commerce followed that up with a 13-0 rout in the second game as LeBlanc (7-2) allowed just three singles over four innings. Both games ended after 4 1/2 frames on the eight-run rule.
ENMU is back in action today with a noon (MST) doubleheader at Texas-Tyler (8-4, 2-0), which is ranked 10th in NCAA Division II and posted an 8-1, 10-3 sweep of previously unbeaten and No. 17 West Texas A&M on Friday.
Commerce (8-4, 2-0) got a one-hit pitching effort from Emily Otto (1-2) in Friday’s first tilt. She walked none and struck out nine, allowing only a first-inning hit batsman and a second-inning leadoff infield single by ENMU center fielder Azalea Martinez.
Commerce collected 10 hits, with LeBlanc going 2-for-3 and collecting three RBIs to lead the way.
In the second game, third baseman Madison Schaefer’s third home run of the season, a two-run shot, highlighted a five-run second and the Lions blew the game wide open with eight more in the third.
Commerce took advantage of six walks, two hit batsmen and two ENMU errors, scoring six unearned runs. LeBlanc walked none and struck out eight before Saylor Williams added two more strikeouts in a perfect fifth.
