Feb. 21, 2006

Final Stats

ABILENE, Texas - Hardin-Simmons' baseball team came up with two dramatic two-out seventh-inning rallies to win both games 5-4 and sweep a doubleheader from UT-Permian Basin at Hunter Field on Tuesday afternoon.

In the first game, the Cowboys rallied in the bottom of the seventh inning with two outs. Ryan Stepp hit a single to left and Michael Simpson followed with a walk. Brad Coleman tied the game with a single through the left side, scoring Stepp. Danny Ruth had a pinch-hit walk to load the bases and freshman James Gage was hit by a pitch to force in the winning run.

UTPB got on the board in the first with a one-out single and Ryan Roberts hit a two-run home run to right. HSU took the lead in the bottom of the fourth with three runs. Stepp broke up a no-hitter by Ken Bice with a bunt single to lead off the inning. Simpson followed with a single to center and Coleman drove home Stepp with a single to left. David Willis followed with a two-run single that hit the third base bag.

In the top of the sixth, UTPB picked up a pair of runs on a single, triple and sacrifice fly.

Dalton Rucker was solid for the Cowboys on the mound in the first game. He allowed two runs in the first, then allowed only one baserunner until the sixth inning. He went six innings and allowed six hits and four runs. Kurtis Lay (2-0) picked up the win with an inning of scoreless relief.

Stepp and Coleman led the Cowboys with two hits each and Willis and Coleman had a pair of RBIs. Adam Either and Eric Gutierrez had two hits for UTPB and Roberts had three RBIs.

In the seventh inning of the second game, the Cowboys once again had both of the first two hitters retired but Coleman was hit by a pitch and then Bo Vaculik singled to end Josh Ramos' day on the mound. Matt Szymarek came in and Taylor Gibbs grounded to second base, but Gutierrez throw was wide of first and Coleman scored. Kevin Ellison, who had pinch ran for Vaculik, moved to third and Gibbs ended up at second.

Ruth then came up and slapped a solid single to left scoring Ellison and a sliding Gibbs to give the Cowboys their third last-inning rally in five games this season.

UTPB jumped out to a two-run lead in the first game with four first inning singles. The Cowboys scored a pair of unearned runs in the second. Bo Vaculik led off with a single and advanced to third on a throwing error. He scored on a Trevor Bunte fielder's choice. Bunte came around and scored on a wild pitch after an error and walk to Taylor Lamar loaded the bases.

The Falcons scored twice more in the fourth inning, using two singles a sacrifice and hit batsmen.

The Cowboys split pitching duties in the game and Kyle Barton threw the first three, allowing two runs, Sidjohn Regala pitched two innings and Lance Johnson (1-0) closed out the games with two innings of hitless work to earn the win. Szymarek took the loss.

Vaculik and Ruth each had two hits for the Cowboys. HSU moved to 3-2 on the year and UTPB fell to 5-6. HSU hosts UT-Tyler in a three-game set this weekend at Hunter Field, beginning Friday night at 7 p.m.