By Scott Longstreet

sdl018@latech.edu

 

A rally fit for the ages saw Tech’s Diamond Dogs erase a 12-6 deficit in the bottom of the ninth to shock the Mississippi State Bulldogs 13-12 at J.C. Love Field on April 4.

The Bulldogs then shut down the Ragin’ Cajuns of University Louisiana-Lafayette 6-3 one afternoon later.

Before 1,624 fans against Mississippi State (22-4), Tech saw itself trailing most of the game. Both teams hit well and scored seemingly at will throughout the contest. MSU had six runs by the fourth inning and controlled the game throughout.

A pair for two-run homeruns from sophomore Brian Rike and freshman Jericho Jones kept Tech within striking distance in the early going.

Mississippi State scored two more runs in the fifth and three more in the seventh, however, to gain an 11-4 advantage.

After the two more runs by Tech and another by MSU, the stage was now set for the incredible comeback with a 12-6 score going into the final half inning.

The remaining 400 or so fans who witnessed the ninth inning saw the first two pinch hitters for Tech ground out, and all appeared lost. 

Suddenly, though, the Tech bats came to life.

Tech saw nine straight batters reach base with eight hits and one walk. Eleven batters came to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, as freshman Nick Grunenwald and senior Matt Lacy ended the hitting barrage with the game-tying and game-winning RBIs.

 “This shows the heart and determination of what we can do,” Tech head coach Wade Simoneaux said.

“I don’t recall ever seeing this [big of a comeback] happen in baseball.”

Senior Ryan Hamilton led Tech on offense with three hits. Seniors Joey McCarthy and Amos Ramon added two hits each, with Jones adding two including his homerun.

“Matchups were the key in the end. We tried to get right-handed batter facing right-handed pitchers and lefties against lefties,” Simoneaux said.

Tech used seven pitchers in the game, with junior Brandon Hudson (1-0) going the final one and one-third innings to earn his first win in his first mound appearance. Hudson, who started the game as the designated hitter, allowed one run on two hits while striking out two batters.

Valentine (0-2) took the loss for Mississippi State, allowing four hits and three runs with one walk while facing five batters.

Tech continued its winning streak by beating ULL (16-12) on Wednesday, claiming a six-game win streak for the first time since 2001, when the Bulldogs won eight straight.

Freshman Dylan Moseley (1-1) got the start for Tech and got his first win of the year.

Moseley, who has not pitched since the Baylor Tournament on March 11, did not show any signs of rust, as he pitched five and two-thirds innings allowing just two runs on five hits.

“Mosley had a solid game for not starting in a while,” Simoneaux said. “This will earn him some more starts in the rotation.”

Junior Andrew Alsup and Ramon finished the pitching; allowing only one run with two hits the final three and one-third innings.

Tech’s bats continued against ULL where the action left off the night before.

Ramon singled in the bottom of the second inning and was followed by a Rike two-run homer, his second in as many days, to give Tech a 2-0 lead.

The Bulldogs scored two in the fifth, one in the seventh and one in the eighth to round out the scoring.

McCarthy led the Tech batting attack with two hits and two runs. Sophomore Adam Cobb, Jones, Hudson, Grunenwald, Hamilton, freshman Drew Thomas added hits along with the one from Rike.

“This was another solid game from our offense,” Simoneaux said.

“We are playing with confidence now.”