SHERMAN, Texas – The St. Thomas baseball team split a pair of tightly contested games against Austin College, earning a 12–1 victory in game one before falling 4–3 in 11 innings. With the split, the Celts moved to 8-11 overall on the season, highlighted by a dominant offensive performance in the opener and a hard-fought extra-inning battle in the finale.
Game 1: UST 12, AC 1
St. Thomas broke the game open in the fourth inning, scoring six runs to seize control. Jace Christian started the rally with an RBI single to right field that brought home Justin Ogle for the first run of the game. Moments later, Zach Cline hit an RBI double to right center to scoring Christian and extending the lead.
The Celts continued to capitalize on pressure on the bases as a pair of wild pitches allowed Cline and Eduardo Tamez to score. Gage Kimble capped the inning with a two-RBI double to left center, bringing home Tyler Mills and Rey Izaguirre to push the Celts to a 6–0 lead.
Austin College scored one point in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI double, but the Celts quickly regained momentum.
St. Thomas added to its lead in the seventh inning. Ogle launched a two-run home run to left field to score Mills before Aryan Chopra singled to drive in Christian. Tamez then delivered the final blow with a three-run home run to left field, scoring Chopra and Cline to extend the lead to 12–1.
The Celts' bullpen handled the rest, holding Austin College to just one run to secure the road victory.
Game 2: AC 4, UST 3
St. Thomas struck first in the opening inning when Gage Kimble hit an RBI double to left center field to drive in Tyler Mills, giving the Celts an early 1–0 lead.
Austin College responded in the bottom half of the inning, taking advantage of a pair of unearned runs on an RBI single to move ahead 2–1.
The Celts tied the game in the sixth inning as Aryan Chopra reached on a fielder's choice that allowed Gage Gustafson to score and tie the contest at 2–2.
The Kangaroos regained the lead later in the sixth inning with an RBI double to make it 3–2, but St. Thomas answered in the eighth inning. Mark Revilla delivered a sacrifice fly to left field, bringing home Jon Torres to make the score 3–3.
Both teams held strong through the late innings before Austin College pushed across the deciding run in the bottom of the 11th inning on a fielder's choice to secure the 4–3 victory.
Up Next:
The Celts look to continue momentum as they face East Texas Baptist University on the road on Tuesday, March 17, at 6PM.
