GEORGETOWN, Texas — Southwestern baseball upset the No. 17-ranked University of Texas at Dallas Comets behind a complete team effort, producing a four-run eighth inning to win 8-4.
The three meetings between the two teams, spaced weeks apart, were an excellent opportunity to track Southwestern's progress throughout the season, moving from a convincing Texas-Dallas 10-2 win in the second week of the season to a nailbiter 8-7 Southwestern loss in early March, to tonight's victory.
Southwestern won with execution, matching Texas-Dallas with eight hits but squeezing twice as many runs out of them.
Maxwell Mims led the bottom of the first off with a single up the middle, then stole second. Preston Witt followed with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt to move Mims to third. Then, Trent Raschke hit a low line drive to right field for an RBI single.
The inning was an example of how Southwestern manufactured runs all night, getting on base and moving runners into scoring position. Witt finished 0-for-3 but was selfless with two sacrifice bunts to move Mims over to third to score two runs that otherwise might not have happened.
Texas-Dallas tied the game with a run in the top of the second, getting a single, walk, and RBI single with two outs to score on Southwestern starting pitcher Ty Elder, who left the game with an injury.
Southwestern used eight different pitchers to limit Texas-Dallas to four runs, getting a stellar performance from the defense to leave 11 Comets' baserunners stranded with the benefit of only one strikeout.
The Pirates took the lead in the fourth inning, taking advantage of two walks and a bunt by Ted Lobkowicz for a single to load the bases. James Vaquero and Alexander Cannata followed with back-to-back sacrifice flies to score a pair of runs.
Texas-Dallas tied the game in the sixth inning with Luke Richards taking the mound in place of J.J. Slack to start the inning. Richards walked the first two hitters, then fielded the first out on a sacrifice bunt that moved runners to second and third.
Lucas Abbott delivered a hard shot up the middle for an RBI that would have gone through for a single, except the Southwestern defense was playing in an extreme shift with Cannata at shortstop playing directly behind second base to field the ball and make the unassisted out at second.
Keegan Vance, who's been nearly perfect in all three games against Southwestern, followed with an RBI single.
Southwestern retook the lead in the seventh inning in an almost identical fashion to its first-inning score. Mims led off with a walk, stole second, and was moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Witt. Then, after Raschke drew a walk, Jacob Tanner hit an RBI single to left field.
The Pirates took advantage of an error to expand their lead in the eighth inning. Lobkowicz opened the inning by reaching on an error, then advanced on a fielder's choice when Vaquero laid down a bunt, and the defense made a failed attempt to get the lead runner at second.
Cannata followed with another bunt for a single, loading the bases to set up Mims' two-RBI single up the middle. After Witt went down swinging, Raschke delivered an RBI single to right field. Texas-Dallas then turned to Orion Dyson, the nation's leader in saves, and Tanner responded with an RBI single to centerfield for the 8-3 lead.
Joshua Werner took the mound to start the ninth inning and promptly loaded the bases, hitting one batter and walking two others. The defense got Southwestern out of the jam, limiting the rough start to a single run scored with a 4-6-3 double play and fly out to right field.
Mims, Raschke, and Tanner each had two hits and two RBIs, with Mims also scoring three runs, and every hitter in the Pirates' lineup was responsible for a run crossing, whether through an RBI, scored run, or a sacrifice bunt that led to a run scored.
Southwestern improves to 16-15 with the win. Southwestern will travel this weekend to face Centenary in a three-game conference series, then return home for a Tuesday game against Howard Payne, followed by the final conference series against Dallas.