Waxahachie, TX – The SAGU Baseball team finished their opening series with Sterling College on Saturday at the SAGU Baseball Field earning two wins to complete the weekend sweep. Each game became a high scoring affair as the Lions took a 14-7 win in game one and an 11-9 win in game two on Saturday.
Game 1:
The base paths were crowded in this high-scoring game as SAGU collected 18 hits while Sterling College had 7. The Lions were able to get on the board first after a Sterling College error, and they kept the momentum in the second inning as they added four runs.
Luis Salazar,
Ben Bills, and
Alejandro Garcia each had RBIs in the frame.
Kaden Kneip led SAGU to victory on the hill as he pitched the last three and two-thirds innings, allowing just two hits and two runs while striking out four.
Ben Bills started the game for the Lions and went three and a third innings, allowing five runs on five hits, striking out two, and walking zero.
The Warriors tallied three home runs on the day as Eric Beyale and Ike Brown each had a homer in the fourth inning while Quinton Gago had a four bagger in the seventh inning. It wouldn't prove to be enough though as SAGU tallied 18 hits in the game.
Ben Bills,
JV Verdin,
Cade Hendricks,
Alejandro Garcia,
Cade Dorethey, and
Luis Salazar each collected multiple hits for the Lions. Bills would go 4-5 at the plate to lead SAGU in hits.
Game 2:
SAGU would jump out to a six-run lead in the fifth inning and held on for an 11-9 victory over Sterling College in game two of the day. The Warriors would score five runs in the failed comeback on a home run by Luis Rodriguez, a double by Kekahi Reiny-Aloy, and a groundout by Layne Thacker.
Luis Salazar led the Lions to victory by driving in four runs. Salazar went 3-4 at the plate and drove in runs on a single in the second and a double in the fourth.
SAGU opened up the scoring in the second inning when
JV Verdin singled on a 3-1 count, scoring two runs.
Grant McManus earned the victory on the mound for the Lions. The righty surrendered eight runs on five hits over five innings, striking out nine.
Logan Mann and
Cade Hendricks entered the game out of the bullpen and helped close out the game in relief. Mann recorded the last three outs to earn the save for SAGU.
The Lions tallied one home run on the day as
Alejandro Garcia went for the long ball in the fourth inning. SAGU saw the ball well in game two of the day, racking up 12 hits.
Luis Salazar,
Sonny Boyd,
Craig Venable,
Alejandro Garcia, and
Ben Bills all had multiple hits for the Lions. Salazar went 3-4 at the plate to lead SAGU in hits.
The Lions will now face Kansas Wesleyan in a four game home series starting on Friday, February 4, at 12:00 PM.
As a leading Christian university, SAGU educates and prepares individuals who want to serve Christ and others. SAGU helps students discover and develop their God-given callings in a Spirit-empowered, learning community. We believe in affordable tuition, made possible in part through the financial support of donors who embrace the mission of SAGU and the importance of affordable, accredited programs to train Christians for leadership in ministry, business, education, and service. Most majors are available in-person in Waxahachie, TX, and online through a wide range of associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees.
