April 17, 2011

Box Score

HUNTSVILLE - Literally and figuratively, Lamar University's baseball team struck out over the weekend in its attempt to send coach Jim Gilligan back home with his 1200th coaching victory.

The Cardinals struck out 14 times, including for the last out, in Sunday afternoon's 3-2 loss to Sam Houston State, and they piled up 28 strikeouts in allowing the Bearkats to sweep the series, three games to zero.

Every Cardinal starter but leadoff hitter Aaron Buchanan struck out at least once in the finale. Thirteen of those whiffs were recorded by Bearkat freshman left-hander Caleb Smith, who recorded his fourth of the season in as many decisions. He held the Cardinals to four hits over eight innings and walked only two batters.

Third baseman Pablo Salinas gave the Cardinals an early 1-0 lead when he hit his first home run of the season to lead off the third inning, but they couldn't make the run stand up. Left-hander Stephen Tromblee relieved Cardinal starter Shane Hamaker in the third inning and turned in six strong innings by scattering eight hits and striking out five batters without walking anyone.

Michael Burchett, who was the winning pitcher in relief in Saturday's middle game of the series, relieved Smith in the ninth inning and allowed a walk to Joe Latulippe and a single to Salinas before striking out pinchhitter Clayon Farhat to clinch his fifth save of the season.

Smith's first pitch of the third inning was a changeup down-and-in, and Salinas lined it over the 330-foot sign in the leftfield corner to account for the game's first run.

Momentum took a dramatic shift in Sam Houston's favor in the fifth inning when Greg Olson placed a well-executed drag bunt to reach base with one out. With the count at 1-1 on catcher John Hale, Olson broke for second base just before Tromblee began his errant pickoff that allowed Olson to speed all of the way to third.

Obviously shaken by that turn of events, Tromblee uncorked a wild pitch to allow Olson to tie score, and Hale followed with his go-ahead home run over the leftfield fence on the next pitch.

Hale came back with a two-out RBI double down the rightfield line in the seventh inning to give the Bearkats a little separation at 3-1.

After there were two outs in the top of the eighth inning, Buchanan poled a triple into the rightfield corner, and Kevin Roebuck followed it with a double down the leftfield line to pull the Cardinals to within 3-2. Smith then struck out pinchhitter Cameron Campbell, however, to end the rally.

The Cardinals will resume SLC action Thursday night when they open a three-game series at UTSA Thursday night. First pitch is set for 6 p.m., and Friday's game will also be at 6 while Saturday's series finale is scheduled for 2 p.m.