Box Score

SHREVEPORT, LA: In their opening game of the 2011 Red River Athletic Conference baseball tournament, RRAC Pitcher of the Year Danny Gidora got the better of a matchup of first-team All-Conference pitchers on Saturday. Gidora’s UT-Brownsville Scorpions (33-22) topped Texas Wesleyan University (31-22) by a final score of 14-4.

 

UTB got a run in the first inning when Joel Fernandez walked and scored on a base hit from Felix Fanaselle. In the third inning, Fernandez walked again and Fanaselle singled him home once again. This time Matt Ginn followed with a two-run homer and the Scorpions led 3-0.

 

Texas Wesleyan had Gidora on the ropes in the third inning. An RBI double from Taylor Jockers and a run-scoring single from Christian Soberanes brought the Rams within two at 4-2.

 

Two Texas Wesleyan errors gave the Scorpions a run in the fourth, and UTB put the game away with a five-run fifth inning. The Scorpions scored the five runs on three singles, two walks, a hit batter, and an error.

 

Gus Henggeler added an RBI double in the sixth inning for UTB. Texas Wesleyan got an RBI double from Justin Padron and a sac fly from Jockers in the bottom of the sixth to bring the score to 11-4, but the Scorpions kept the pressure on and closed the game out early with three runs in the seventh.

 

Gidora (11-2) notched his third consecutive victory and lasted at least seven innings for the fifth consecutive outing. He allowed four runs on eight hits while striking out five in the complete game seven inning effort.

 

Derek Vaughn (5-4) was touched for eight runs, seven earned, on five hits and six walks in 4.1 innings of work.

 

Padron went 2-for-2 with an RBI and two runs scored in the loss.

 

The Rams will return to action on Sunday. They will face top seeded LSU-Shreveport at 3:00 p.m. The Pilots, currently ranked ninth nationally, defeated Texas College on Saturday.