UT Arlington Falls At Troy

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TROY, Alabama – UT Arlington fell behind big early and couldn’t muster a comeback in Saturday night’s 11-8 Sun Belt Conference loss to Troy at Riddle-Pace Field.

The Mavericks had their three-game winning streak snapped, dropping to 19-24 overall and 10-10 in conference. The Trojans improved to 21-23 and 8-11.

The series is on the line in Sunday’s rubber match. First pitch has been moved up to 11 a.m.

Pitching let UTA down, as Troy pounded out 17 hits and scored all 11 runs in the first four innings. The 11 earned runs were the second most allowed by the Mavericks this season.

Troy chased UTA starter Zach Thompson in the second inning after David Hall’s grand slam gave the Trojans a 7-0 lead. All seven runs on Thompson were scored after two outs in the first and second innings.

Troy scored twice in the first after getting three straight hits with two outs. Nick

Masonia drove both runs in with a triple into the right-center field gap.

The Mavericks got three runs back in the third on one swing of the bat on Matt Shortall’s bases-loaded double down the left-field line. After UTA pulled within 7-4, the Trojans answered with four runs in the fourth to take a seven-run lead.

UT Arlington inched closer on Gregg McCall’s two-run single in the fifth, but a pair of base-running errors cost the Mavericks a potential big inning. Shortall drilled his seventh homer run of the season – a two-run shot – in the sixth to make it 11-8.

The Mavericks had the tying run come to the plate with two outs in both the eighth and ninth innings. Shortall tied a career high with five RBI set last season against UTSA.