AUSTIN, Texas (April 28, 2018) – Lubbock Christian University baseball suffered a tough weekend closing out a four-game road series against St. Edward's with a pair of shutout losses at Lucian-Hamilton Field in Austin, Texas. The Chaparrals gave up a total of 13 runs for the day falling 4-0 in the day's opening contest and 9-0 in the final contest. Ryan Johnson was charged with the loss in game three of the series while Daniel Crooks was credited with LCU's final defeat.
 
The Chaparrals were unable to tap into their offense throughout the day producing a .169 team batting average while leaving 11 runners on base. St. Edward's struck first with an early run in the bottom of the opening inning of play. LCU was able to stay within striking distance of the Hilltoppers keeping the score at 1-0 for the next four innings. In the bottom of the fifth the Chaps made a pitching change that moved Chandler Casey onto the mound in place of Johnson. SEU was able to capitalize on the substitution taking a 3-0 lead over the next three batters with a pair of RBI singles.
 
The Chaps were able to generate one more hit in the seventh and final inning from Keaton Greenwalt. Greenwalt was then able to advance to second base on the SEU throw. Unfortunately for LCU, the damage had been done by that point as Brennan Rhodes struck out on the next play to conclude the day's opening game with a 4-0 defeat for the Chaparrals.
 
In the fourth and final game of the series LCU seemed to open up in a similar pattern with the Chaps going down in order through their first two innings at the plate. Crooks, who did not allow a hit from the Hilltoppers in the opening inning, was unable to match the feat in the second allowing two quick SEU runs on a pair of singles and a sacrifice bunt. With St. Edward's holding a 2-0 advantage and one out on the board, Blake Alexander stepped up to the plate and ripped a grand slam for the Hilltoppers, their second of the weekend, extending their lead to a six-run margin.
 
Lubbock Christian's struggles at the plate continued through the fourth inning where the Chaps still had not managed a hit. It was Will Clark who broke the hitless streak for LCU as he pushed a double through to center field. The momentum stopped there when the Chaparrals failed to bring Clark home and ultimately left him stranded heading to the bottom of the fifth.
 
Despite a St. Edward's single to open up the bottom half of the fifth inning, the Chaparrals managed to turn a double play after SEU's Zach Schindler hit a ground ball to Braden Hayward at third base. Nate Dockery, who had taken Crook's place on the mound in the second inning, closed out the fifth with a strikeout that left St. Edward's Matthew Jimenez looking.
 
SEU tacked on three more runs through the final three innings of play for a 9-0 result over the Chaparrals. The shutout defeat marked the third of the series for LCU and their sixth of the season.
 
Lubbock Christian's 1-4 mark against the Hilltoppers over the weekend leaves the Chaps at a 28-18 overall record and a 13-11 record in Heartland Conference contests. LCU now finds themselves in a two-way tie for fourth place with Newman in Heartland standings.
 
UP NEXT
The Chaparrals will have the opportunity to gain some ground back as they will take on conference leader Arkansas Fort Smith in a four-game home series. The series will open up Thursday, May 3 with a double header beginning at 4 p.m. at Hays Field in Lubbock, Texas.