TCU baseball win streak hits four
FORT WORTH, Texas – The No. 7 TCU Horned Frogs stretched its winning streak to four games with a 7-3 victory over UT Arlington Tuesday night at Lupton Stadium. Jason Coatsd tallied three hits and drove in two, while Taylor Featherston homered and collected two RBIs.
Stefan Crichton started and went 2 2/3 innings, allowing a run on four hits. Trent Appleby (1-1) picked up the win in relief after surrendering one run on two hits in 3 1/3 innings of work. He walked one and struck out two. Kyle Starratt allowed a run on three hits and struck out one in 1 1/3 innings. Erik Miller tallied his third save of the season with 1 2/3 scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and struck out two.
With one swing of the bat, Michael Guerra put the Mavericks up 1-0. The solo home run was came with one out in the first inning.
TCU wasted no time tying the game, as it picked up a run on one hit in the bottom of the frame. After retiring the first two batters quickly, Maverick starter Chase Weaver issued a four-pitch walk to Featherston. Coats unloaded on a Weaver offering to deep
center and raced to third with a stand-up triple that drove in Featherston to tie the game at one.
The Frogs manufactured the go-ahead run in the bottom of the second. Aaron Schultz lined a double down the left field line with one out. On the next pitch, he raced to third with his fourth stolen base of the season. Joe Weik delivered a sacrifice fly that put the Frogs up 2-1.
UT Arlington threatened to tie the game in the top of the third as it loaded the bases on two hits and a walk with two outs. Weik made a fantastic catch on a ball ticketed for the right field line off the bat of Greg McCall to end the inning and preserve the lead.
Featherston kept the scoring streak alive with a lead-off home run in the third inning. Jerome Pena hit a hustle-double to right center and moved to third on a ground out off the bat of Jimmie Pharr. A walk to Josh Elander kept the inning going and a balk by Kasey Merck gifted the Frogs their fourth run of the game.
The Frogs saw a golden opportunity to increase their lead in the fourth inning go by the wayside as they left the bases loaded. UT Arlington fed off the momentum and translated it into its second run of the game. Philip Incaviglia doubled to open the inning and moved to third on a bunt single by Ryan Walker. Guerra collected his second RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly that made it 4-2.
The lead shrunk to one in the top of the eighth inning as the Mavericks’ Preston Beck hit a solo home run to right to make it a 4-3 contest.
Zac Jordan started the bottom of the eighth off with a sharply hit single to center. Weik was hit by the pitch to put two on with nobody out. Brance Rivera dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners in scoring position. The Mavericks elected to intentionally walk Jantzen Witte to load the bases. Featherston beat out a potential double play ball to push the advantage to 5-3. Back-to-back wild pitches gave the Frogs a 6-3 lead and moved Featherston to third where he scored on a base hit by Coats.
Cody Dyvig singled and Brian Nephew doubled to put runners on second and third with nobody out to open the ninth inning. Miller buckled down and got Jake Pinchback to strike out, the induced a ground ball to third off the bat of Incaviglia for the second out. He put the nail in the coffin, getting Walker to line out to short to end the game.
TCU improves to 8-4 on the season. The Frogs will host Houston Baptist this weekend in a three game series that is slated to begin Friday night at 6:30 p.m.
