Baseball | 1/30/2021 7:46:00 AM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
 PHOENIX, Ariz. – Oklahoma Panhandle State University baseball dropped a pair of Friday games at the Coach Calderone Invitational.  The Aggies (0-3) fell to the University of St. Katherine, 6-4, before dropping a 20-6 decision to Arizona Christian University.
 
Versus USK, Panhandle was cruising behind senior pitcher Joseph Goetze, holding a 4-0 lead through the top of the sixth of the seven inning game. Through the first five frames, Goetze had allowed only one hit – a first inning double – and retired the side in order twice.
 
But the Firebirds erupted for all of their six runs in the bottom of the sixth, chasing Goetze and grabbing the lead for good. Goetze went 5.2 innings and was charged with all six runs, three unearned. He struck out four and walked two.
 
Jose Santiago helped OPSU's offense with a two-run homer in the top of the third. Santiago was 2-for-3, also slapping a double.
 
Centerfielder Mekhi Edwards also went 2-for-3, scoring three runs and drawing a walk.
 
Markus Bracey, Luis Dermas and Tucker Bond had the other Aggie hits. Bond's knock was a double, one of the three Aggie extra-base hits in the game.
 
In the second contest of the day versus a strong Arizona Christian squad, Zeke Dugan took the hill for OPSU (after getting the final out in game one of the day). But Dugan found the going rough versus ACU, going 2.0 innings and giving up eight hits. Dugan was charged with six runs, just two were earned, however. Four Aggie hurlers would follow Dugan to the mound in what would be a frustrating effort to quell the Firestorm bats that banged out 26 hits on the afternoon.
 
Santiago's hot bat was on display versus ACU, as well, going 3-for-5 and homering for the second-straight game with his ninth-inning solo shot. Santiago drove in two runs.
 
Edwards was the only other Panhandle player with a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Chris Schraer had an RBI with a fourth-inning sacrifice fly.
 
The Aggies will cap the Phoenix trip with a single game on Saturday evening (6 p.m. CT) versus Ottawa University.