RUSTON, La. – UTSA's rally in game one comes up short and Louisiana Tech comes back in the second to sweep Friday's Conference USA doubleheader at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park.
Hunter Grimes homered twice and Karan Patel recorded his fifth quality start in the opener but it was not enough for the Roadrunners, who dropped to 13-18 overall and 5-6 in league play.
With 4-2 and 8-7 victories, the Bulldogs improve to 20-10 and 7-4.
Game 2 Recap:
Scoreless through the first three innings of the nightcap, Jonathan Tapia and Grimes registered back-to-back home runs in the fourth, giving UTSA a 4-0 lead.
Griffin Paxton led off with a single and moved to second when Nick Thornquist worked a walk. Both advanced 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt by Chase Hacker. Tapia's three-run homer to left was followed by Grimes' blast three pitches later.
After a fourth scoreless inning of work by the Roadrunners starter, Slater Foust, they added to their advantage with a run in their next at bat.
LA Tech responded with five runs on five hits and benefitted from a defensive miscue and evened the game at 5-5.
The Roadrunners recaptured the lead with single tallies in each of the next two frames.
Grimes homered in his second-consecutive plate appearance with a one-out four-bagger in the sixth. Dylan Sturges walked and score without the aid of a hit by the visitors in the seventh.
In the bottom of the frame, the Bulldogs rallied, grabbing their first lead of the second game with three runs on three hits and an error, moving in front 8-7.
Bulldogs' pitching retired six of the final seven batters to secure the victory.
Game 1 Recap: LA Tech 4, UTSA 2
Hunter Wells three-run home run spoiled another great outing by Patel.
Patel allowed just a walk to the first eight batters he faced before LA Tech registered four-straight hits in the third inning. After back-to-back singles with one out in the frame, Wells broke the scoreless tie with his second long ball of the season.
The Bulldogs pushed the advantage to 4-0 with an unearned run in the fifth. Patel, Zach Griggs, Bradley Griggs and Hunter Mason quieted the bats, not allowing a run over the final four innings.
In the Roadrunners ninth, Bryan Arias and Ryan Stacy opened the frame with back-to-back singles. Sturges, who reached in three of his four plate appearances, walked with one out to load the bases. They got on the scoreboard when Garrett Moon's grounder with two outs ate up the Bulldogs' shortstop, allowing Arias and Stacy to score.
Braxton Smith, who relieved Miller after Stacy reached, fanned the final batter of the game and earned his fifth save of the season.
The series finale is at 2 p.m. Saturday.
- UTSA -
