Conway, Ark. - Hendrix carried a 7-2 lead over #5 East Texas Baptist (ETBU) into the 9th inning but surrendered a 10-spot that proved to be too much to overcome in a 12-10 loss on Wednesday evening.
Both teams had declared the midweek contest a staff day, but
Jack Hodgins pitched as if it were a Friday night in league play. The 6th-year allowed just two hits in 4.0 scoreless innings of work while striking out two.
The Warriors took a 2-0 lead in the bottom half of the 1st after
Adam Bland and
Drake Job led off with back-to-back singles.
Zach Marriott led off the bottom of the 2nd with a bomb to right field for a solo shot and a 3-0 lead. It was the first home run of the year for the senior, and only the second home run of the year at Warrior Baseball Field hit by the home team after
Owen Shaw homered versus Oglethorpe last Sunday.
Klayton Wingfield entered in relief of Hodgins in the 5th and worked around a single and a walk to pitch a scoreless frame.
Hendrix loaded the bases with no outs in the home half of the inning courtesy of a single, walk, and a throwing error, and
Charlie Deaton drove in the fourth run of the game with an RBI walk. Shaw recorded his second RBI of the afternoon with a SAC fly to right, and Marriott subsequently singled into centerfield to bring in
Drake Job for a 6-0 lead.
The Tigers hit back in the top of the 6th with a 2-run shot to left, but Hendrix responded in the home half of the inning as Job singled to right field with two outs to score
Austin Rabago.
The two sides went scoreless in the 7th and 8th innings before the wheels fell off in the 9th. ETBU plated three runs with no outs before smashing a 3-run shot to left center to take an 8-7 lead. The Tigers would score four more runs in the half inning to take a commanding 12-7 lead.
Hendrix loaded the bases after the leadoff hitter was retired, and Deaton was eventually brought in to score after
Griffin Baird was hit by a pitch. With two outs on the board and bases still loaded,
Joseph Watts induced a fielding error by the second baseman that allowed two more runs to score and flip the lineup card over to Bland. But that was all the scoring the Warriors could muster in the 9th as the Tigers recorded the third out to secure their comeback victory.
Up Next: Hendrix (22-13, 12-6 SAA) will hit the road for their series finale in league play to take on the Centre Colonels in what will be a winner-take-all, with the series winner clinching the Southern Athletic Association regular season title. First pitch for Game 1 is set for Friday night at 6:00 PM.
