(Story courtesy of Trinity University Athletics Communications)
MARSHALL, Texas – The sixth-ranked Trinity University baseball team put on an offensive showcase with a 20-2 win over Huntingdon College (AL) in the opening game of the NCAA Regional Tournament that is hosted by East Texas Baptist University this weekend.
The Tigers (37-7) scored in all but two innings in the win over the Hawks (22-20), launching six doubles and four home runs among 18 total hits in the game. This is the fourth straight year that Trinity has opened the NCAA Regionals with a win, though this is the first meeting between Trinity and Huntingdon – including the regular season.
Brandon Morio earned the win for the Tigers, facing just one hitter to improve to 7-0 this season. He came on in relief in the fifth inning, replacing starter Jake Beck. Beck pitched 4.2 innings, allowing two runs on five hits and striking out three batters. Trajan Lee (Dallas, Texas / John Paul II) came in for Morio and pitched the rest of the game to earn his first save of the year, finishing with 4.0 shutout innings in which he allowed just three hits and struck out a team-best four batters.
The offense was the star today, though, led by outfielder Kaleb Woodward. Woodward went 4-for-5 with two doubles and a home run, scoring five runs, and collecting three RBI. His five runs scored ties a school record and he also becomes the first Tiger ever to score five runs in a game more than once – he also had five runs against Austin College (TX) earlier this year. Fellow outfielder Maddox McDonald went 3-for-5 with a home run, scoring three runs, and driving in four more. Nicholas Lazzara tied McDonald for the team lead with four RBI, adding three runs scored, and going 2-for-3 with a home run at the plate. Brandon Nelson and Kai Tinker also went 2-for-3 for Trinity, while Nelson also had three RBI and two runs scored.
The Rundown
The offense set the tone early, following a 1-2-3 first inning for Beck with a three-run bottom half to take the early lead. The Tigers had three hits and drew three walks in the inning and only an inning-ending double play kept it from getting out of hand from the start. Woodward and McDonald both singled to start the game, then McDonald stole second. On the steal, Woodward was able to come home on an error by the Hawks to make it 1-0. Nelson drove in the other two runs with his bases-loaded single later in the inning.
Beck pitched around a walk and two singles in the second by inducing a double play, keeping the Huntingdon hitters from doing any damage. After a rare zero in the bottom of the second, Trinity's offense came back with two more runs in the third to take a 5-0 lead. Lazzara walked to open the inning, followed by a double from Nicholas Jones. Nelson drove in the first run with a ground ball to the right side of the infield, then Tinker muscled a double to left field for the other score.
The Tigers were back for more in the fourth as McDonald followed a double by Woodward with a two-out bomb that made it a 7-0 lead. Huntingdon finally broke through against Beck in the fifth, starting with two hits that eventually led to two runs. Morio came in after the second run and got the final out to keep it a 7-2 game.
The flood gates really opened after that as Trinity poured in four more runs on five hits in the bottom of the fifth to take an 11-2 lead. Khalfani Coney doubled in the first run of the inning, then Cam Champness smashed a two-run homer to add two more tallies for the Tigers. Lazzara brought in the 11th run of the day with his RBI single three batters later.
The sixth inning turned out to be the best of the day for Trinity's offense, though it didn't look like it from the beginning. The Tigers hadn't scored yet when they loaded the bases with two outs, but they would wind up with six more runs before the third out was recorded. Woodward walked to drive in the first run of the inning, then McDonald drove in two more with a single to center field. Lazzara then hit an absolute no-doubt three-run home run over the wall in right field to make it a 17-2 lead. Trinity scored its final three runs in the bottom of the seventh, thanks to an RBI double from John Ramsey, and a two-run homer to left-center by Woodward.
Up Next
Trinity will face either Millsaps College (MS) or hosting ETBU at 2:30 p.m. tomorrow afternoon at the NCAA Regional in Marshall. Huntingdon will take on the loser of the Millsaps/East Texas game at 11:00 a.m., with the winner moving on to another elimination game on Saturday night. The winner of Trinity's game will turn right around to play that elimination game. The NCAA Regional Championship is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Sunday.
