LUBBOCK, Texas (April 17, 2021) – Lubbock Christian University clinched its second-straight series victory with a 7-3 win in game one of Saturday's doubleheader against Cameron, but fell 9-8 in the nightcap at Hays Field.
 
The split moved the Chaps to 13-17 on the year and 12-15 in Lone Star Conference play. Cameron's series finale win was just their fifth overall this year, against 24 losses.
 
GAME ONE
It was a cold, cloudy day at the ballpark, especially early in the first game when the wind was blowing 10 miles per hour in from right center. As such, it took both offenses some time to get warmed up, and both teams were scoreless through the first three innings of play.
 
Lubbock Christian finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth inning. Edgar Hernandez walked and stole second before Larry Leitha also walked. Then with two outs, Grant Griffin came up and doubled down the left field line to drive in both runners.
 
Cameron got one of the runs back in the top of the fifth, and then in the sixth, the Aggies scored two runs off reliever Peyton Hutson to take a 3-2 lead.
 
LCU tied the game back up in the bottom of the seventh after Eduardo Acosta doubled to lead off and was driven in by a single from Edgar Hernandez.
 
Then in the eighth, Mason Donohoe blasted a one-out triple to right center, and the run came home on a single from Griffin Acosta then followed with a triple of his own and also came around to score on a throwing error by the Aggie second basemen. Luis Navarro doubled later in the frame, and Colin Gordon hit the third and final triple of the inning, giving the Chaps a 7-3 lead heading into the ninth.
 
Logan Ellis was the reliever on the mound for both the eighth and ninth innings, and he sat the Aggies down in order in the ninth, earning his first-ever collegiate win on the mound.
 
GAME TWO
It looked as though the Chaps would cruise to a win in the second game of the doubleheader as well, sweeping their second straight opponent, but the Aggies had other ideas.
 
Each team plated a run in the first inning, but Lubbock Christian took a lead in the second with three runs. Leitha and Donohoe worked a double steal, causing an errant throw from the CU catcher that allowed the go-ahead run to score before Griffin tripled in Donohoe. Acosta followed with a double to put the Chaps up by three.
 
LCU added three more runs on a Leitha triple and a Donohoe single in the third, giving them a six-run lead that seemed to be comfortable but ended up not being quite enough.
 
Cameron began its comeback in the fifth inning with three runs off Tyler Hardwick, who had started the game for the Chaps. Then in the sixth, the wheels really fell off as the Aggies plated five runs, not only tying the game, but taking a 9-7 lead.
 
The Chaps got one run back in the seventh on a Leitha double, and nearly got the tying run across, but George Mendazona was cut down at the plate trying to score from first on the play.
 
LCU had runners at second and third with one out in the eighth, but a nice play by the Cameron pitcher kept either runner from scoring. The heart of the order was up in the ninth, but they went down in order to end the game.
 
Free bases were a major issue for the Chaps in the series finale loss. Five of the Aggie runners that scored in the game reached base via either a walk or a hit-by-pitch.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
.556 | Back in the starting lineup this weekend for the first time since March 27, outfielder Larry Leitha hit .556 with two walks, three runs and three RBI. He was just a homer short of the cycle in game two of Saturday's doubleheader
19 | LCU had four triples on Saturday and six in the series overall, increasing their season total to 19, which is the second-most in the LSC. The last time a Chap team had more than 19 triples in a season was 2017, when they hit 25
21 | Luis Navarro had hits in both games of the doubleheader, pushing his hitting streak out to 21 straight games
.240 | Chaparral leadoff batters reached base in just six of their 25 chances over the weekend for a .240 on-base percentage, despite reaching base at a .480 clip overall
3.81 | Despite the loss in the series finale in which they allowed nine runs, Lubbock Christian's pitching staff had an ERA of 3.81 over the weekend
 
NEXT UP
Lubbock Christian will play its first and only midweek game of the year on Tuesday, travelling to take on Angelo State at 6 p.m. in San Angelo, Texas.