Wonder Boys use big innings to ease past East Central in series opener

ADA, Okla. - The Arkansas Tech baseball team opened up their weekend series on the road at East Central on Friday afternoon with a 17-6 win in eight innings. The Wonder Boys would score in half of the innings played and made the most of those with at least runs in three of the innings.
The scoring for the Wonder Boys got started in the top of the first on a RBI single from Christian Olea. Tow innings later, the Wonder Boys scored five runs on three hits to take a 6-0 lead. Olea was responsible for the first run of that inning as he singled home Tyler Sardelli, who had previously led the inning off with one of his four hits in the game.
Olea's single came right in front of the big blow in the inning as Sawyer Duddleston hammered a three-run home run out to left field. Later in the inning, Kirby Jenkins scored on a double steal attempt for the fifth run for Tech.
East Central responded in their half of the third and scored four runs on four hits to pull within two of the Tech lead. After holding the Wonder Boys scoreless in the top of the fourth, ECU rallied in the bottom of the inning and scored twice to tie the game at six-all.
Neither team scored in the fifth, but the Wonder Boys regained their lead in the sixth with three runs on four hits. Joe Kinneberg had the first RBI in the inning as he singled home Kolby Webb, who doubled in the at-bat prior. Later in the inning, Simon Murray drove in the other two runs as he singled to right.

The Wonder Boys' pitching staff would go on to hold ECU scoreless the rest of the way out and allowed just two hits from the fifth inning on.
With the pitching staff doing their part, the Tech offense put the game away in the top of the eighth as they scored eight runs on six hits. The first two runs of the inning scored on bases-loaded walks issued consecutively to Murray and Olea. Duddleston then hit a sac fly for the third run. That was followed immediately by a two-RBI double from Jenkins. During the next at-bat, Jenkins would steal second and then score on a throwing error by the ECU catcher.
Later in the inning, Tech got RBI singles from Luke Ray and Cole Dawson.
The Wonder Boys and Tigers will play the final two games of the series on Saturday afternoon. The doubleheader is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.