BLINN EXTENDS WINNING STREAK TO EIGHT WITH 10-4 VICTORY OVER WHARTON

Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information

The Blinn College baseball team's recent surge has been a masterclass of resiliency.

For the fifth time during an eight-game winning streak, the fourth-ranked Buccaneers emerged victorious after trailing, with their latest effort resulting in a 10-4 Region XIV South road win over Wharton County Junior College on Thursday in Wharton, Texas.

The first-place Bucs improved to 10-2 in the South and 22-6 overall.

"We're certainly not playing our best baseball yet, but we are figuring out how to play as a team, which is the most important component in playing winning baseball," Blinn head coach Dusty Hart said. "You can't help but be proud of what we're doing right now because we keep fighting and coming through with big pitches, play, and hits when we need to, and we're finding ways to win games."

The Bucs, who have claimed the first two games of its four-game set with the Pioneers, got a mixture of those winning ingredients on Thursday.

Wharton led 4-1 heading into the fifth, but key at bats from freshmen Trey Craig and Brady Sullivan turned the tide.

Back-to-back walks brought Craig to the plate with one out in the top of the inning, and the slugger sent the fourth pitch he saw to the wall in right center for a two-run double. After freshman Drew Britton singled, Sullivan entered the game as a pinch hitter and sent a line-drive single to center field. The ball skipped away from the Wharton center fielder, allowing Craig and Britton to score easily while Sullivan sped around the bases for a little league home run and a 6-3 Blinn lead.

"Sullivan's at bat was the turning point for us tonight," Hart said. "That was a great at bat for him because he battled and fought, fouled off some pitches into a full count, and got a pitch he could handle and put a good swing on it. It's moments like those that help build your confidence and help remind you why you're here and why you're one of our guys."

The Bucs would tack on two more runs in both the seventh and ninth innings to pull away.

Blinn clubbed 15 hits, including a 4-for-4 ball game for sophomore Matt Quintanar, who doubled, walked, drove in a run, stole two bases, and scored three runs. Craig, Britton, and freshman Benji Berrera had two hits apiece, while Berrera also had two RBIs.

After the Pioneers found offensive success early, they had no such luck against freshman relief pitcher Cadyn Shaw, who entered for Blinn with two outs in the third. 

After a bumpy start in which Shaw walked in an inherited baserunner, he was superb for the rest of his 5 1/3-inning stint. He allowed four hits, two walks, and struck out six Pioneers while improving to 3-1. He also lowered his earned run average to a sparkling 1.80.

"He's our stopper," Hart said of Shaw. "It's nice having a security blanket to go to whenever you need to keep a game from getting out of hand or you need to keep yourself in a game. His pitch count got a little high there at the end and he wasn't able to go back out in the ninth to get those last three outs, but I believe we wouldn't have gotten to the last three outs of the ninth without Shaw tonight."

After Shaw exited, freshman Jack Garza took the bump and worked around a walk to close out the game. He struck out two.

Sophomore Bennett Fryman started the game for Blinn and lasted 2 2/3 innings. He allowed four runs (one earned) on four hits with a walk and a strikeout.

Blinn and Wharton close out their series with a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 22, at Leroy Dreyer Field in Brenham.