WAXAHACHIE, TX: The 22nd ranked Texas Wesleyan University baseball team (37-15, 19-5 SAC) clinched the Sooner Athletic Conference Regular Season Championship by sweeping a doubleheader at Southwestern Assemblies of God University (14-40, 4-20 SAC) on Tuesday. The Rams won with scores of 7-4 and 11-1.
The NAIA also released the eighth regular season edition of its Coaches' Top-25 poll Tuesday afternoon. Conference runner-up University of Science & Arts (USAO) rose one spot to No. 16, while the Rams held at No. 22. Wayland Baptist, who finished fourth in the SAC standings, checked in at No. 24.
The Rams finished with a league record of 19-5. That was matched by USAO, but the Rams held the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Drovers thanks to a series clinching walk-off home run from
Casey Moses back on March 20. SAGU meanwhile was knocked out of the postseason. One win on Tuesday would have put the Lions in the SAC tournament as the 8th seed; however, that spot went to Bacone College.
Game One
In game one, the Rams got on the board with an RBI single from
Blake Seaton in the top of the first, but the Lions answered when Eric Hagstrom led off the bottom of the inning with a double and later scored on a ground ball from Raul Castro.
SAGU took advantage of Texas Wesleyan errors in the second and fourth innings to plate two unearned runs and lead 3-1.
In the fifth, the Rams loaded the bases with two outs when the second error of the inning allowed
Blake Seaton to score. Back-to-back walks issued to
Jake Davis and
Chandler Schoelkopf put the Rams on top 4-3.
Two more Lion miscues opened things up in the sixth. The Rams plated runs with RBI doubles from Seaton and
Casey Moses and a sac fly from
James Ziegler, pushing the score to a more comfortable 7-3.
An RBI single in the bottom of the seventh from Castro capped the scoring at 7-4.
The Lions outhit the Rams in the game, 9-6, but 6 errors were too much to overcome. Seaton was 2-for-4 with a double and 2 RBI in the win.
Stephen Yancey (8-1) earned the win after scattering six hits across five innings. He allowed three runs, one earned, while striking out a pair. Colton Glover (0-3) took the loss after surrendering four runs, one earned, on four hits in 4.2 innings.
Game Two
In game two, the Rams started the merry-go-round in the first inning. Four singles and three walks turned into five early runs.
SAGU got a run back in the bottom of the first with an RBI single from Elijah Young, but
James Ziegler and
Erick Quesada delivered back-to-back bombs in the top of the second. Ziegler's two run shot was followed by a solo homer from Quesada to give the Rams an 8-1 advantage.
Garrett Crook led off the third with his third triple of the season, and a sac fly from
Alex Gudac brought the score to 9-1.
Gudac touched off his second home run of the season in the fifth inning, and
CJ Ateek capped the scoring at 11-1 with a sac fly in the sixth.
Ricky Hull (7-3) earned the win after allowing a run on five hits while striking out five in four innings of work.
Avery Sullivan and
Parker Robinson contributed three scoreless innings of relief work. SAGU went through eight pitchers in the contest. Brandon Ventura (3-9) allowed five runs, four earned on three hits and three walks while not recording an out.
The Rams outhit the Lions 13-7. Gudac led the way, going 3-for-4 with a double, home run, two RBI, and two runs scored. Ziegler went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI.
Dusteyn Suttle was 3-for-3 with 2 RBI.
Dylan Measells went 2-for-3, and Quesada was 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI.
Up Next
The Rams will be the top seed in the SAC Tournament. They will play in the Oklahoma City
bracket and will open with 8th seeded Bacone at 11:00 am on Friday. The SAC Tournament features two four-team double-elimination brackets split between Oklahoma City and Chickasha, OK. The bracket winners will meet at Oklahoma City's Jim Wade Stadium for the title game at 1:00 pm on Monday.
Ramblings
- The Rams are 41-6 all-time against SAGU. They are 45-27 all-time in SAC play.
- Texas Wesleyan's last conference championship came in the Red River Athletic Conference in 2010. The Rams joined the SAC prior to the 2014 season.
- The Rams finished the regular season with a school-record 30 triples. The previous record of 24 was set in 2005. 30 triples currently ranks second in the NAIA, just one behind LSU-Shreveport.
