Hounds cling to virtual tie for seventh despite loss

FORT SMITH, Ark. – Eastern New Mexico University’s baseball team let one get away on Sunday against last-place Arkansas-Fort Smith, dropping an 11-inning, 9-8 Lone Star Conference decision to the Lions to end up with a four-game split.

ENMU (17-20, 15-20 LSC) remains percentage points ahead of St. Mary’s (16-19, 14-19) for seventh place in the 13-team circuit with three weeks and 12 games left in the regular season, trying to earn a top-eight finish and a spot in the LSC postseason tournament scheduled for May 5-7 (first-round best-of-three series at campus sites) and May 11-13 (four-team, double-elimination event). Lurking right behind the Greyhounds and Rattlers are Texas A&M International (17-24, 16-23) and Texas-Permian Basin (16-22, 14-22).

ENMU hosts Oklahoma Christian (12-26, 12-24) for four games this weekend at Greyhound Field, then closes the regular campaign with series April 21-23 at St. Mary’s and April 28-30 at home against Lubbock Christian (21-16, 20-16).

In Sunday’s matchup, ENMU led 5-1 in the fourth and 8-3 in the seventh before UAFS (9-29, 7-29) rallied, manufacturing three runs in the seventh and then tying it with two outs in the ninth on an RBI infield hit by shortstop Mason Reynolds and a run-scoring double by second baseman Noah Davis.

UAFS right-hander Devon Chapa (1-2) set the Hounds down in order in the 10th and 11th. Jordan Helm was hit by a pitch leading off the bottom of the 11th and scored on Reynolds’ one-out double to left-center.

“(It was a) pretty disappointing way to end the weekend,” ENMU coach Riley Price said. “We had so many opportunities to score throughout the game and didn’t have enough guys step up with quality at-bats.

“We let a scrappy team hang around, and they made us pay as they walked it off. Today they were the tougher team mentally and physically, and that’s something we need to get back on our side going into the last few series.”

The Lions outhit ENMU 16-9, led by Reynolds with 4-for-5 and junior Niko Patrick with 4-for-6. For the Hounds, sophomore second-baseman Demetrio Archuleta went 2-for-4 with a sacrifice fly and a two-run single, while sophomore shortstop Willie Ponce belted a three-run double in a four-run fourth and finished 2-for-3.

Chapa, Fort Smith’s sixth pitcher, allowed only one hit over the final three innings, retiring seven hitters on groundouts in his third appearance of the series. Senior right-hander Javier Luna (1-1) took the loss, working 4 1/3 innings and permitting six hits and three runs.

The teams combined to strand 25 baserunners, 14 by ENMU.

Arkansas-Fort Smith 7-3, ENMU 2-5 (Saturday) – Freshman left fielder Jonatan Clough’s two-out, two-run homer to left-center in the seventh broke a 3-3 tie and gave the Hounds a split in the second of two seven-inning contests.

Junior left-hander Rugar Bravo (5-5) tossed a three-hitter with two walks and nine strikeouts. Junior right-hander Jakob Petross (1-5) also went the distance for the Lions, giving up six hits, walking two and striking out five.

Clough’s home run was his team-leading 10th and second of the series. He finished 2-for-4 while freshman third baseman Dylan Hummel was 2-for-3 and staked the Hounds to a quick 3-0 lead with a two-run single off Petross in the first inning.

UASF pulled even with two outs in the fourth on a run-scoring single by center fielder Michael Brinton and a two-run single by right fielder Brandon Ulmer. After Bravo had retired 11 of the first 12 hitters, sophomore Michael Schilling doubled and junior Blayse Quarnstrom was hit by a pitch – one of three in the game by Bravo – to set the table for Brinton and Ulmer.

Clough’s home run brought home senior center fielder Camden Matthews, who led off the seventh with a single to center field.

In the opener, junior right-hander Brayden Johnson (2-6) worked six four-hit innings before giving way to Chapa, who surrendered three two-out singles in the seventh but retired Archuleta on a game-ending groundout to third with the bases loaded.

Both teams had seven hits, with Patrick going 2-for-3 with a two-run single in a six-run Lions fourth and Brinton driving in a pair with a fourth-inning single and a sixth-inning sacrifice fly.

Archuleta, who scored both ENMU runs, and junior right fielder Cooper Hamilton each had a pair of singles for ENMU.