Baseball | 2/23/2018 9:15:00 AM
Box Score Portales, N.M.—The Aggies traveled to Portales, New Mexico on Tuesday, Feb. 20 for a nine-inning contest against the Eastern New Mexico University Greyhounds. In the first match-up between these two teams earlier this season, the Aggies overtook the Greyhounds and came out on top, but this second time around ENMU battled back and the Aggies took the loss (9-1).
Beautiful ballgame weather welcomed the Aggies to Greyhound Stadium on Tuesday in sunny, 60-degree Portales, and both teams were eager to take the field. The Aggies faced the Greyhound's Capellan on the mound in the top of the first, the Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week from ENMU.
Juan Sanchez, however, wasn't fooled by Capellan as he got on with a base on balls to start the game, advanced with a groundout from
Chris Schraer, and advanced again as he stole third. Catcher
Gerson Padilla also saw good takes and walked, but the two runners would ultimately be stranded on the bases as the Aggies left the first quiet.
Josh Casillas took to the bump for the Aggies as the Greyhounds capped off the first with two runs off three hits. OPSU went three up-three down in the second while ENMU added another two runs off an RBI fielder's choice and an RBI single through the right side.
The top of the third would leave runners on with no score for the Aggies while the Greyhounds continued their double RBI innings, tacking on two runs off three well-placed singles, bringing the score up 0-6 in favor of the Greyhounds. The Aggies would make a pitching change to bring in
Colby Fuller to relieve Casillas in the bottom of the third. Fuller did his job and the fourth was left silent for both teams, and the Aggies would see some action in the fifth. A double from
Kasey Leatherwood led off the top of the fifth, and he would advance to third off a groundout from
Frederick Frye.
Jake Bowman grounded out but bolstered an RBI and drove home Leatherwood, getting the Aggies on the board. The fifth and sixth innings passed without much action on either side of the ball, but the Aggies brought in leftie
Garrison Armstrong to change up the tempo on the mound in the bottom of the sixth. The Greyhounds were quick to pick up Armstrong's pitches, so
Adrian Lopez came out in the seventh to close the game, but not before ENMU added on three runs off a roped single from their hot hitter Villalona. The Aggies would not answer back and the eighth and ninth innings passed with no score on either side, leaving the final tally at 9-1, ENMU.
The Aggies now hold a 5-10 record on the season but are hopeful to bounce back as they travel to Plainview, Texas this weekend to take on Wayland Baptist. The Aggies will face the Pioneers in a SAC three-game weekend series Friday 23 with a double header beginning at 2 p.m. followed by a nine-inning game on Saturday 24 at 2 p.m. The Aggies will return home on March 2-3 for a home match-up against Bacone College.
