SHAWNEE, Okla. – The Arkansas Tech baseball team saw their season-high five-game winning streak come to an end on Friday night as they were up-ended by Oklahoma Baptist by a score of 4-3 in the opening game of the weekend series.
The homestanding Bison (12-13, 8-8 GAC) struck first in the game with a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning. Tech answered back with a three-spot in the top of the second inning to go up 3-1.
That inning was sparked by
Evan Hafley reaching first with one out on a throwing error by the Bison's third baseman.
Sawyer Duddleston was then hit by a pitch to push Hafley into scoring position. In the next at-bat,
Shelby Quiggins doubled to right field to score Hafley and advance Duddleston to third.
Carter Thessing then cashed in both Quiggins and Duddleston with a with a two-RBI single to right field.
The two-run lead for the Wonder Boys (15-9, 9-7 GAC) was short-lived however, as Oklahoma Baptist plated a pair of runs in the bottom half to tie the game at three-all. An inning later, the Bison pushed across the go-ahead run on a RBI groundout to second base.
That ended up being the last run scored in the game by either team as both starting pitchers,
Patrick Miner for Tech and Bo Dallas for Oklahoma Baptist, settled into a pitcher's duel from there on. There were a few stressful moments on both sides, however, but a total of 13 runners left on base over the final six innings of action resulted in no further damage in the run column.
Both the Wonder Boys and Bison had to use just one reliever with
Grant Shahan registering the final out in the bottom of the eighth for Tech and Sam Gamboa collecting his first save of the year for the Bison with a scoreless ninth inning.
Miner ended up pitching 7.2 innings with six scattered hits, four runs allowed (three earned), one walk and four strikeouts. His counterpart, Dallas, pitched 8.0 innings and allowed nine hits, three runs (one earned), walked two and struck out nine.
The series is set to conclude on Saturday as the Wonder Boys and Bison will play a doubleheader starting at Noon.
