State baseball roundups

SUN BELT

UALR 10, FLORIDA ATLANTIC 5

BOCA RATON, Fla. - Blake Huffman took a no-hitter into the eighth inning then UALR held on for a victory that clinched a Sun Belt series on Sunday at FAU Baseball Stadium.

Huffman allowed just one base runner through the first seven innings - Levi Meyer struck out with two outs in the second inning but reached base on a wild pitch - before Meyer singled to lead off the eighth. Ricky Santiago and Nathan Pittman each hit RBI singles and Tyler Buckley relieved Huffman with two outs in the eighth.

Florida Atlantic (28-19, 13-11) scored three runs in the ninth when Meyer hit an RBI double, Brendon Sanger scored on an error and Santiago hit an RBI singled. But Buckley struck out Sean Murrell to end the game for the Trojans (24-23, 10-14).

Huffman (6-3) gave up 2 runs on 4 hits and struck out 7 in 7 2/3 innings to earn the victory.

The late runs didn’t matter much thanks to a five-run fourth for UALR, which loaded the bases without getting a hit and then Kaleb Jobe hit a two-run triple to put UALR up 3-0. Ben Crumpton then drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 4-0, and Austin Pfeiffer hit a two-run single to make it 6-0.

The Trojans added a run in the sixth, one in the seventh and two in the ninth when Chris Burk hit his fifth home run of the season as the Trojans won their first conference road series of the season, and the second series in as many weeks.

LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 8, ARKANSAS STATE 1

LAFAYETTE, La. - Arkansas State scored a run in the first inning, but couldn’t get another run across, Louisiana-Lafayette pulled away with a six-run sixth inning and the Red Wolves were swept in a Sun Belt series for the third time this season.

ASU (24-24, 10-14) scored its only run when Kevin Fitzpatrick hit a one-out singled, stole second base, then stole third and scored on a throwing error. But the Red Wolves, never got more than one hit in an inning the rest of the game and stranded seven runners on base.

Ben Carter held ASU to 1 unearned run on 3 hits in 5 innings to earn his first victory of the season for Louisiana-Lafayette (34-15, 15-9), and Ryan Wilson and Matt Hicks allowed only one hit each through four relief innings.

Cody Woodhouse, making his first Sun Belt start for the Red Wolves, held the Sun Belt’s top hitting team to two runs through five innings before the Ragin’ Cajuns broke out in the sixth.

Seth Harrison led off with a home run to left field, then Caleb Adams hit a two-run home run two batters later that made it 5-1 and ended Woodhouse’s game. Chandler Hawkins then gave up RBI doubles to Dylan Butler and Michael Strentz and anRBI single to Dex Kjerstad that made it 8-1 at the end of the sixth.

Adams also hit a home run in the fourth inning and Louisiana-Lafayette hit five home runs during the three-game series to extend its NCAA Division I lead to 57.

SOUTHLAND

CENTRAL ARKANSAS 2, SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 1

CONWAY - Bryce Biggerstaff struck out seven batters to earn a complete-game victory and Central Arkansas scored the only two needs it needed in the sixth inning of a series-clinching victory Bear Stadium.

Biggerstaff allowed only two hits and the only run he gave up came on a sacrifice fly in the eighth while improving to 4-2 for the Bears (32-13, 11-10).

Kaleb Manuel didn’t allow a Central Arkansas hit until the fifth inning and the Bears finally broke through for a pair of runs in the sixth, when Forrestt Allday singled, was moved to second on a bunt by Johnathan Davis and Ethan Harris hit an RBI double and Michael Marietta hit an RBI single to give the Bears a 2-0 lead.

Biggerstaff then retired Southeastern Louisiana (30-18, 13-8) in order in the seventh, allowed one run on one hit in the eighth and worked a perfect ninth to clinch the victory. It was Biggerstaff’s third complete game of the season.

SWAC

PRAIRIE VIEW A&M 3-8, ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF 2-5

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas - Prairie View A&M battered six Arkansas-Pine Bluff pitchers for 13 hits in the second game of a doubleheader sweep Sunday. Four different Panthers had two hits each and they scored three runs in the second, two in the fifth, one in the seventh and two in the eighth.

The two runs in the fifth tied the game at 5-5 after UAPB (19-30, 11-11) scored two runs in the second, two in the third and one in the fourth.

But the Golden Lions, who were held to five hits, were held to two hits over the final five innings.

Warren Stehn hit an RBI double in the second and Dwayne Hysmith hit a sacrifice fly to get UAPB within 3-2. The Golden Lions took a lead when Mike Wieland hit a sacrifice fly in the third and Isias Alcantar hit an RBI single. Cody De Mera hit a sacrifice fly in the fourth to make it 5-3, but the Golden Lions couldn’t muster another run.

UAPB was held to single runs in the fifth and ninth innings of the first game, and stranded the tying run on first base. Michael Medina held UAPB to 1 run on 4 hits in 7 innings and Stephen Lunsford gave up 1 run on 2 hits in 2 innings to earn the save for the Panthers (23-22, 12-10), who won three of four games in the series.

Sports, Pages 17 on 05/06/2013

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