Rams go four for four against Javelinas

Over the weekend, the Angelo State University Rams baseball team dominated the Texas A&M University-Kingsville Javelinas in four games: one on Friday, April 12, two on Saturday, April 13, and one on Sunday, April 14. The Rams would see victory over the Javelinas in all four games by scores of 15-5, 9-4, 6-5 and 10-4, marking a seven-game win streak.

Friday's game kicked off with a slow first inning; the Javelinas took the lead in the second inning with two back-to-back runs from third base to home. The Rams followed up with their second inning, tying the score 2-2 with runs from third by senior infielder Conagher Sands, followed shortly by junior infielder Tayten Tredaway. The Rams took a 5-2 lead in their fourth inning with senior center Tripp Clark, junior outfielder Weston Valasek and junior infielder Kamden Kelton scoring in a single play after loading all bases. With another run by Tredaway, followed by sophomore outfielder Hunter Holt, the Rams reached a 7-2 lead. After a standstill in the following couple of innings, the Javelinas scored two more runs off a home run with a Javelina on base, followed by a run from third base for a 7-5 score in their sixth inning. The Rams' sixth inning saw a home run by junior outfielder Jacob Guerrero for an 8-5 lead. The Rams secured a strong lead in their eighth inning with a run by sophomore center/infielder Blake Wilhoite. Afterward, the Rams acquired three runs by redshirt junior infielder Justin Harris, Guerrero and Clark off of a home run by Clark for a 12-5 lead. Shortly afterward, three more runs were scored from third base by redshirt sophomore infielder Rance Rosas, Valasek and Holt, reaching the 15-5 final score and marking the Rams' first win.

Saturday's first game saw the Javelinas take the lead in their first inning with two runs from second and third base. The Rams’ first inning saw a run by Harris for a 1-2 score. Soon, a second run by Harris tied the score 2-2 in the Rams' third inning. The Javelinas went on to retake the lead with two more runs in their fourth inning, leading 2-4. Holt kicked off the Rams' fourth inning with a home run, followed by runs by freshman infielder Ryder McDaniel and Wilhoite for a 5-4 lead. Two more runs by Holt and Rosas placed the Rams at a 7-4 lead. Soon after, two runs were secured by Clark and Harris off a home run by Clark for the final 9-4 score, marking the Rams' second win.

Saturday's second game also began with the Javelinas scoring first and taking a 0-2 lead in their second inning; however, the Rams immediately tied the score 2-2 with two runs by Valasek and McDaniel. After a standstill in the following two innings, four consecutive runs by Tredaway, Kelton, Wilhoite and Harris placed the Rams at a 6-2 lead. The Javelinas' seventh inning saw them score three more runs off of a home run for a final score of 6-5, marking the Rams' third win.

Sunday's game began with a home run by Clark for a 1-0 lead in the Rams’ first inning; however, the Javelinas followed up with a home run of their own, tying the score 1-1 in their second inning. The Rams retook the lead with a run by Kelton in the Rams' second inning. The Javelinas once again tied the score, 2-2, in their third inning, with the Rams following up with two more runs by Clark and Sands for a 4-2 lead. Clark, Holt and Harris scored three more runs for the Rams, reaching a 7-2 lead in their fourth inning. Narrowing the score gap, the Javelinas secured two more runs in their fifth inning for a score of 7-4. By their seventh inning, the Rams reached a 9-4 lead with two runs scored by Valasek and Sands; furthermore, reaching the 10-4 final score with a home run by Guerrero in their eighth inning, marked the Rams’ fourth win of the weekend and seventh consecutive win overall.

Having defeated the TAMUK Javelinas four for four, the Rams now hold a 30-12 overall standing, retaining their third-place ranking in the Lone Star Conference. Next up, the Rams will take on the St. Edward's University Hilltoppers in four away games over the weekend, Friday, April 19 to Sunday, April 21.