RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas Tech baseball team hammered six home runs over both ends of Sunday afternoon's doubleheader to help power themselves past Henderson State in each game, sweeping the twin-bill and the series in the process.
The series sweep is the Wonder Boys' (20-8, 17-4 GAC) second-straight and fourth overall. Along with the rest of the happenings around the Great American Conference, the Wonder Boys' sweep of the Reddies (20-8, 17-4) elevates them alone atop the league standings, a game up on Oklahoma Baptist and two on Southern Arkansas.
GAME ONE
In the opener, Henderson State scored a run on two hits, all with two outs, in the top of the first inning off of Tech starter Riyan Rodriguez. The Reddies would only manage one more hit and were held scoreless the rest of the game. In the bottom of the inning, the Wonder Boys drew even at a run apiece on a line drive opposite field home run off the bat of Evan Hafley.
An inning later, the Wonder Boys broke the game wide open by scoring five runs on four hits in the bottom of the second. In that inning, the Wonder Boys batted around and it was Trace Maddux who started the frame by drawing an eight-pitch walk. Jonathan Arrieta followed with a single through the right side, moving Maddux to third. He then came home on a single to right-centerfield off the bat of Kandon Bennett. A steal of second by Bennett and a walk to Drew Bailey loaded the bases with no outs.
Elijah Boyer then chopped a do-or-die single to the Reddies' pitcher that scored Arrieta from third. Two more runs then scored on a double to left field by Garrett Crews. A batter later, the Wonder Boys forced home their fifth and final run of the inning on a RBI groundout by Matt Robbins.
After not scoring in the third, the Wonder Boys were back at it in the fourth, scoring four runs on four hits in the frame. The first two runs came on a two-run home run out to right field by Robbins. Hafley then followed suit with a towering solo shot out to left-centerfield. The final run scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Bennett.
With the score 10-1 in favor of the Wonder Boys heading into the top of the seventh inning, Tech turned to the bullpen for Shelby Quiggins. Prior to that Rodriguez had settled in from the first inning and ended up pitching 6.0 innings, scattering three hits, allowing one earned run, walking three and striking out six. Quiggins was efficient in his inning of work as he retired the side in order and notched a strikeout in the process.
In the bottom of the inning, the Wonder Boys got themselves in position to end the game in a run-rule following consecutive singles by Crews and Robbins. On Robbins single, Crews went to third and was pinch-ran for by Landon Lord. During the ensuing at-bat, Lord stole second and then the game was over as Crews scored on a wild pitch.
GAME TWO
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Reddies once more scored first with a run in the top of the first. In fact, the Reddies were the first to score in each game and did so with a run in the first inning.
This time, it would take the Wonder Boys until the third inning before they pulled even on a solo home run out to right field by Robbins, his second of the day. An inning later, Arrieta put a ball on top of the roof of the multi-sport complex in left field to put Tech up 2-1.
In the fifth, Robbins tacked on another RBI, this time doubling up the middle to score pinch-runner Joe Morin.
That early run support was in favor of game three starter Hayes Cox for the Wonder Boys. The run that he gave up in the first was an unearned run and outside of that, Cox was cruising through the first five innings. In the sixth, he hit a little bit of a snag as the Reddies put together a two-out rally that resulted in Henderson tying the game on a two-RBI single through the right side. That spelled the end of the game for Cox. He would leave with the go-ahead run on base as his responsibility, but Mason Griffin (Rogers, Ark.) was able to get out of the inning without any further damage, giving Cox the no-decision.
It was not long in the bottom of the sixth inning, two pitches in fact, before the Wonder Boys connected for yet another solo home run, this one off the bat of Detweiler to straightaway centerfield.
That proved to be all of the wiggle room needed for Nick Kovar to navigate and nail down his fourth save of the season. The save would not come without any drama, however, as the Reddies got a leadoff single and later had the potential tying run moved into scoring position following a four-pitch walk with two outs. Kovar was undeterred by that free pass as he came back to strikeout the final batter swinging on three pitches.
The Wonder Boys will now prepare to hit the road for the final time in the regular season this coming weekend as they head to Weatherford, Okla. to take on Southwestern Oklahoma. The three-game series is scheduled to begin on Friday, April 16 at 2 p.m.
