Baseball dominates Dillard in GCAC Opening Series
The Wiley University baseball team had several players contribute offensively and strong pitching performances as it swept its Gulf Coast Athletic Conference opening series with 11-4, 11-10 and 13-0 victories over Dillard University on Saturday and Sunday at Airport Park.
The Wildcats (6-13, 3-0 GCAC) swept their opening conference series for the second straight season. It's their first victories over the Bleu Devils in program history, giving them their longest winning streak of the season. Wiley scored first in all three games.
SATURDAY
GAME 1
The Wildcats got on the board in the second inning. Ivan Del Villar hit a one-out double and scored on a two-out single by Amir Mason. Dillard took the lead in the fifth with two runs on three hits. Wiley answered in the bottom half. Eddie Garza and Jacob Perez doubled to tie the game. Ryan Ready put Wiley ahead with a sacrifice fly to right, bringing home Perez.
Isaac Burciaga, who made his first start in GCAC play, only allowed one runner to reach in the sixth. The Wildcats broke the game open with eight runs. Brendan Mendoza and Mason led off the inning with singles. Abel Rodriguez brought both batters home with a double to right. Eddie Garza singled, which set up a double steal - which Rodriguez scored. Ivan Del Villar delivered the big hit, hammering a pitch over the center field wall for his first career grand slam and second home run this season, extending the Wildcats' lead to nine.
Garza went 2-for-3 with a double, scored two runs and stole two bases. Mendoza and Mason also had two hits. Nine players got hits and scored runs. Six players got RBI.
Burciaga went the distance - earning his second victory of the season. He held the Bleu Devils to four runs on six hits. Burciaga walked two, hit two batters and struck out four.
GAME 2
Wiley struck first in the third inning with an RBI single by Del Villar - which scored Perez, who led off with a walk. Ryan Ready, who was hit by a pitch scored on a passed ball. Dillard tied the game in the fourth with two runs on a hit and an error.
The Wildcats bounced back. Abel Rodriguez doubled and advanced on a passed ball. After Perez walked for a second time, he executed a double steal with Rodriguez scoring. Ready extended the lead with a two-run blast to right-center. Jhan Carlos Javier followed with his first home run of the season to center field - extending the Wildcats' advantage to 6-2. Del Villar singled and scored on a balk by the pitcher.
Wiley entered the seventh with a 10-5 lead. Its pitchers struggled with command as three of the first four batters were hit by pitches, leading to a run. A wild pitch and a passed ball brought in two more runs, cutting the Wildcats' lead to two. Manny Contreras came in to pitch with the tying runs in scoring position. The first batter he faced brought them home with a single. Contreras retired three of the next four hitters he faced to keep the game tied.
Smauri Abram pinch-hit and walked. He advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Rodriguez. Eddie Garza doubled but Abram was thrown out at home. Garza advanced on defensive indifference. A single up the middle by Perez brought him home to seal the game.
Jalen Porter started and went 4 2/3 innings. Only three of the five runs he allowed were earned. He struck out seven batters. Nick Rodriguez pitched 1 1/3 innings. Josiah Jackson pitched to one batter. Contreras picked up his first career win after the Wildcats regained the lead.
SUNDAY
GAME 3
The Wildcats jumped out to the lead with their highest-scoring first inning this season. Garza led off with a single and stole second. An infield single by Javier brought him home. Del Villar hit his second home run of the series over the left field wall to extend the lead to four. Abel Rodriguez followed with an RBI single. Julian Rosales, who courtesy ran for the catcher Caidin Franklin scored on Garza's ground ball to second, increasing the lead to 6-0.
For the third time in the series, the Wildcats pulled off a double steal in the third inning with Garza taking second and Rodriguez scoring. Ready followed with a two-RBI single. Mason hit a two-RBI double in the fourth, and Javier hit his second home run of the season with a two-run blast over the left-center field wall in the fifth.
Del Villar went 3-for-4. Javier went 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs. Mason and Rodriguez both went 2-for-3. The Wildcats outhit Dillard 11-4. Six players got hits, eight scored runs and six recorded RBI.
Keyon Guillory started and pitched his first career shutout and earned his first career win. He struck out a career-high 12 batters.
The Wildcats will wrap the homestand on Tuesday with a doubleheader against Texas College starting at 2 p.m.
For more coverage on the Wildcats visit Baseball - Wiley University (wileyathletics.com)
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