STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Senior Matthew McDonald went 5-for-5 with a home run, double and three RBIs as Lamar University defeated Tarleton State, 15-8, to win the series Saturday afternoon at the Tarleton Baseball Complex.
 
McDonald recorded one of the team's four home runs on the day as junior Ethan Ruiz got one and sophomore Kevin Bermudez recorded two. The Cardinals finished the day with 15 runs on 19 hits. Along with McDonald's five-hit day, Bermudez with 3-for-6 (3 RBIs and three runs) and Ruiz was 4-for-5 with two doubles and four RBIs.
 
Senior Adam Wheaton (5-1) gave the Cardinals another strong start going 7.0 innings allowing just four runs – all earned – on eight hits with one strikeout. Wheaton ran into just one tough inning allowing three runs in the six. Joe Buckendorff came on to pitch the final two.
 
The Cardinals got the scoring started early with two in the first. Kelby Weyler drove in the first run on a sacrifice fly. Big Red made it 2-0 after a Ryan Snell single was followed by a Durand double to left field. The Texans bounced back with one in their half of the first but the Cardinals managed to hang another crooked number on the board the very next inning.
 
After a leadoff double, Bermudez took the first pitch he saw over the fence in right field to make it a 4-1 lead. It was Bermudez's second home run of the season.
 
The Cardinals tacked on a fifth run in their half of the third, and Wheaton did the rest keeping Tarleton off balance into the sixth inning. The Cardinals went for the knockout punch in the top of the sixth after scoring three runs on four hits with two doubles.
 
After McDonald led off the inning with a single, Ruiz brought him home on a double to left on a 1-1 pitch. Two batters later, Ruiz came around to score on a Kemp double (right field). Durand drove in the final run of the inning. The three runs came at just the right time as Tarleton answered with a three-run blast in their half of the sixth.
 
The Cardinals responded to Tarleton's three-run inning immediately by hanging a four on the scoreboard. McDonald got the innings started with a solo blast in the seventh. After a LaMontagne single, Ruiz took a 2-1 pitch to left center to push the advantage to 11-4. Two pitches later, Bermudez crushed one to right to go back-to-back (Bermudez's second of the day), the team's third of the inning and fourth of the game.
 
The Cardinals tacked on three more runs in the eighth with McDonald (2) and Ruiz (1) picking up the RBIs. Tarleton closed out the game scoring the final four runs.
 
Big Red goes in search of the sweep Sunday when they return to the field for a 1 p.m. first pitch from the Tarleton Baseball Complex.