ABILENE – The Sam Houston Bearkats scored eight unanswered runs in the final four innings to score an 11-8 comeback win over Abilene Christian on Sunday at Crutcher Scott Field, completing a weekend sweep of the preseason WAC Southwest Division favorites.
The Kats (19-13, 10-5 WAC) trailed 8-3 after four frames before tying it up with a 5-run sixth and then going ahead with three more runs in the eighth. The win, along with a loss by Lamar at Tarleton, surges Sam Houston into sole possession of first place in the WAC Southwest Division midway through the season.
Carlos Contreras and
Justin Wishkoski each drove in three runs, while
Wes Folse delivered a pair of key RBI singles of his own.
The offense racked up a dozen hits, but it was the Bearkat bullpen that held the Wildcats (15-17, 7-8 WAC) right where they were at as the combination of
Blaine Romero,
Braden Davis,
Alex Havlicek and
Lance Lusk allowed just one run in 6.0 innings of work.
Havlicek picked up the win with a pair of shutout innings in the sixth and seventh before turning it over to Lusk who struck out three Wildcats in 2.0 scoreless innings for his fifth save of the year.
A 2-run homer by Contreras in the first inning off of ACU starter Tanner Riley had the Kats out in front early on, but ACU tied it up with a pair of scores in the second and then scored five runs with two outs in the third, capping the surge with a 3-run homer from Hunter Gieser.
The teams traded runs in the fourth before the Kats began their comeback following a clean relief inning from Davis in the fifth. Folse and Loyd pushed across the first two runs of the sixth, but it was Wishkoski that delivered the big blow with a 3-run triple into the right-field corner that tied the game at 8-8.
Havlicek then held firm in his innings and was rewarded with a lead early in the eighth inning when the Wildcats committed their third error of the game on an attempted sac bunt attempt by Wishkoski, plating both
Easton Loyd and
Clayton Chadwick. One batter later Contreras brought in Wishkoski with an RBI single of his own.
That 3-run lead was plenty for Lusk who entered in the eighth and worked around a pair of 2-out hits before setting ACU down in order in the ninth.
The Kats now return home to Don Sanders Stadium for a pair of midweek games on ESPN+, beginning Tuesday against Rice and followed by hosting UTSA on Wednesday.
