LUBBOCK, Texas (April 16, 2021) – Although it was cold and the wind was blowing in upwards of 20 miles per hour, the Lubbock Christian University offense continued its recent hot streak, as the Chap took down Cameron 10-0 in the series opener on Friday night.
 
The win was LCU's third-straight in run rule fashion and their fourth straight in general, moving them to 12-16 on the year and 11-14 in Lone Star Conference play.
 
Both teams were held scoreless through the first two innings, despite Lubbock Christian loading the bases in the bottom of the first. Colin Gordon was the batter up with runners at every station and he hit a hard line drive that seemed destined to score runs, but the Aggie second basemen made a leaping grab to end the inning.
 
The Chaps finally broke through in the bottom of the third inning. Caden Hensley singled with one out and stole second base before Edgar Hernandez singled up the middle to drive him in. Hensley ended the game 3-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored. He also made a highlight reel play at second base in the fifth.
 
Even though LCU wound up scoring nine more runs, the one would have been enough for Armando Valle, who had his second straight dominant outing. He allowed just two hits in his seven innings of work along with two walks while striking out 12 batters. Valle has now pitched 17 consecutive innings without allowing a run.
 
In the fifth, the Chaps broke the game open with four runs. Eduardo Acosta started things off with a one-out single and, after a balk, scored on a Hensley double. Luis Navarro followed with a single of his own to drive in a run and advanced all the way to third on a pair of wild pitches. Then with Hernandez at first, the pair ran a designed that should have ended up with Navarro scoring and Hernandez picked off, but the latter did not occur and Gordon double to drive in Hernandez for the final frame of the game.
 
Lubbock Christian added single runs in the sixth and seventh innings, with Navarro and Acosta claiming the RBI. Navarro leads the team with 31 runs driven in and Acosta is second with 26.
 
Valle finally left the game after seven innings of shutout ball to be relieved by Cannon Davis, who worked a quick scoreless eighth on just eight pitches.
 
In the bottom of the frame, George Mendazona drew a two-out walk and was replaced by pinch runner Parker Rumsey, who scored when Gordon followed with a triple. Larry Leitha came up next and drove another pitch over the center fielder's head to the warning track. Leitha would not be held to a triple though, as he raced around the bases for an inside-the-park home run that ended the game.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
19 | Luis Navarro went 2-for-5 in the win, extending his hitting streak to 19 games. It is the longest hitting streak by a Chap since Hunter McFall hit in 23 straight games in 2016
66 | With his 12 Ks on the night, Armando Valle now has 66 for the season, which is the third-most in the Lone Star Conference
.421 | The Chaps hit .421 with runners on in the win, including .400 with runners in scoring position
18 | Navarro also caught another runner stealing in the first inning, increasing his league-leading total to 18. It is the second-most by a Chap catcher in the last 10 years, behind only Andrew Pratt's 19 caught stealing in 2018
7 | Conversely, LCU was a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen base chances, which is their most in a single-game this year
 
NEXT UP
Lubbock Christian will wrap up the series against Cameron on Saturday, hosting a doubleheader at Hays Field that will begin at 1 p.m.