March 30, 2011

Box Score

WACO - Seven Lamar University pitchers combined on an eight-hitter Wednesday afternoon, and Kevin Roebuck hit his team-leading fourth home run of the season as the Cardinals defeated 19th-ranked Baylor University at Baylor Ballpark.

Junior right-hander John Gilligan, nephew of Cardinal coach Jim Gilligan, picked up his second victory in as many decisions by pitching one scoreless inning while allowing only one hit. Machon Trimm, a junior left-hander from Pearland, worked the final 1.1 innings to earn his first major college save.

Shortstop Aaron Buchanan went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs for the Cardinals, while Roebuck and senior third baseman Pablo Salinas both went 2-for-5.

The victory, which made amends for a 6-4 elimination loss to the Bears in the NCAA Fort Worth Regional, improved the Cardinals to 18-10 on the season and moved the elder Gilligan to within five wins of reaching the 1,200 plateau in his 34-plus seasons as a head coach.

Lamar got on the board first in the second inning when second baseman Andrew Dewey drew a bases-loaded hit by pitch to force in a run. Jake Miller's sacrifice fly brought in the tying run for Baylor in bottom of the third, and Cal Towey followed with an RBI single to left field to give the Bears a 2-1 lead.

The Cardinals retied the score in the fourth inning on a single to left field by Cameron Johnson, walks to Dewey and Roebuck and four-pitch walk to Buchanan to force in the run.

Pinchhitter Andy Mena ignited the Cardinals' two-run sixth inning by drawing a leadoff hit by pitch, and Roebuck promptly followed with a his 11th double of the season into left centerfield. Mena scored on Buchanan's groundout to second base, and Jeff Abt's sacrifice bunt brought in Roebuck.

The Cardinals increased their lead to 6-2 in the seventh inning when Mena drew a bases-loaded walk to force in one run, and Buchanan's ground single up the middle drove in the other.

The Bears, who lost to Lamar's fellow Southland Conference member UTSA 4-2 on Tuesday night, reduced their deficit to 6-3 in the eighth inning when Landis Ware reached base on a fielder's choice, advanced to second on a groundout by Nate Goodwin and scored on Brooks Pinckard's single down the rightfield line.

Roebuck's solo homer over the leftfield fence with two outs in the ninth completed Lamar's scoring, and Trimm wrapped up the win by striking out pinchhitter Grayson Porter with runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the inning.

The Cardinals will return to SLC play Friday night when they open a three-game series Southeastern Louisiana. At 6-3, the Cardinals are currently in a three-way tie for third place in the league race, while Southeastern Louisiana is 5-4 and in sixth place.

LAMAR