RICHARDSON, Texas – Needing to win just one game on Saturday to secure the American Southwest Conference Regular Season Championship, #23 East Texas Baptist swept the University of Texas Dallas, 7-1, and 6-3, in both for the top spot. ETBU is now 27-9 and 21-3 in the ASC. With the win, ETBU has now won back-to-back regular season championships in both seasons clinching it against Texas Dallas.
Sayers Collins and
Jacob Sherman received the wins.
Ben Lea and
Jordan Hara both had three hits as five players added two hits each.
Brett Wagner led the team with four RBI while
Austin Barry, Hara, and
Jase Jones added two RBI and Lea and
Jacob Evangelista recorded one RBI.
Game 1
ETBU 7, UTD 1
Collins earned the complete game win recording nine strikeouts and giving up one earned run on four hits. He retired the side in the first, fourth, and six innings. Hara and Barry led the team with two hits. Barry added two RBI along with Wagner as Hara, Jones, and Lea had one RBI.
Wagner started the scoring for ETBU with a two-run homer in the second inning and now has 10 home runs and 43 RBI on the season. In the third inning, Hara singled in
Jake Miller to make it 3-0. Barry followed with a single to left field as two more runs came in for a 5-0 lead. The only run for UTD came in the third on a home run. Jones then added the sixth run of the game singling down the right field line and the Lea ended the scoring in the fifth inning with a double as Wagner came in for the six-run lead, 7-1.
Game 2
ETBU 6, UTD 3
It took five pitchers in the final game of the series to earn the win for ETBU as Sherman pitched the sixth inning for the win and
Jagger Neely recorded a three-inning save. Lea led the team with two hits as Wagner had two RBI and Evangelista, Hara, and Jones added one RBI.
Wagner made the first run happen with a fielder's choice in the first inning as
Carson Wilson came in. Evangelista then had a sacrifice fly in the second inning scoring Lea for the 2-0 lead. In the third, Wagner doubled in a run and then Jones singled in Wagner making it 4-0. UTD homered in the bottom of the inning to come within three, 4-1. In the fourth inning, Evangelista was the fifth run on a wild pitch. UTD homered again in the bottom of the fourth for their second run to stay within three, 5-2. They added a run in the fifth inning to come within two, 5-3. Hara, though singled in Wilson as the final run in the sixth inning to make it 6-3.
Peyton Miller started the game and went four innings with four strikeouts giving up two earned runs.
Robert Croft followed for 0.1 innings and a strikeout as
Cody Johnson followed for 0.2 innings and one strikeout. Sherman pitched the sixth inning allowing just one hit and then Neely shut down the Comets in the final three innings for the save with two strikeouts and one hit in 10 batters faced.
ETBU will play Centenary on Tuesday at Woods Field and then host Ozarks in their final weekend of ASC play before the post-season tournament.
