GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – Blinn College baseball dug itself a big hole after allowing Galveston College to score six runs in the opening inning as the Buccaneers were unable to recover and lost 13-7 in the consolation bracket of the Region XIV Tournament at Texas Air Hogs Stadium.
With the loss, Blinn was eliminated from the postseason tournament and ends the season with a 28-27 overall record.
Angel De La Fuente was able to bring in two runs with a home run and a double. De La Fuente hit two home runs in two tournament games to end the season.
Sam McElreath hit a double and a single and brought in a run while Trent Murphy and Tyler Fowler each had an RBI without a hit. Colton Parrish hit a triple while Jay Anderson and Marshall Skinner each hit a double.
Kyle Gray came on in relief and pitched seven solid innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits while striking out eight.
Blinn dug itself a big hole as Galveston scored six runs in the opening inning to take a 6-0 lead. Blinn did cut into the lead in the second inning as McElreath started it with a single and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Murphy to left to get within 6-1.
The Buccaneers crept even closer in the third inning when Anderson started the inning with a double and then scored on a wild pitch to get within 6-2. De La Fuente helped Blinn get within two runs with a home run ripped to left to make the score 6-4. Galveston did add a pair of runs in the fourth to pad the lead to 8-4.
De La Fuente helped to keep Blinn going in the sixth inning with a leadoff double and then was able to score on a wild pitch to get within 8-5. Galveston earned that run back with a single run in the seventh to take a 9-5 lead.
The Buccaneers did not go away quietly as Parrish ripped a triple to begin the bottom of the eighth and then scored after a double by McElreath to right to get within 9-6. Fowler brought in the seventh run on a bases loaded walk but that would be the final run scored by the Buccaneers. Galveston scored four runs in the ninth to pad its lead to 13-7 that would end up as the final score.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 36 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.
About Blinn College
With an enrollment of 19,422 students, Blinn ranks among the nation's leaders in transferring students to leading four-year universities and has received national recognition for affordable educational excellence. For more information, visit www.blinn.edu.