May 4, 2008
Final Stats
ARLINGTON, Texas - - The UT Arlington baseball was hurt by one bad inning and couldn't overcome that five-run seventh as the Mavericks dropped a 6-5 decision against Nicholls State in a Southland Conference game Sunday at Clay Gould Ballpark.
The loss drops the Mavericks (21-27, 12-12) back to the .500 mark in conference play as they fight for a spot in the Southland Conference postseason tournament scheduled May 21-24 in Huntsville. Nicholls State (9-39, 4-20) avoided losing its 40th game of the season.
UTA held a 5-1 advantage before the Colonels took the 6-5 lead.
The Mavericks tried to rally in the eighth, loading the bases against Nicholls State reliever Lance Guidroz (1-3), who earned the victory for 2 2/3 innings of work. But a pop fly to left ended that scoring chance.
Mavericks reliever Drew Clementz (0-2) took the loss.
UTA junior right-hander Andy Sauter handcuffed the Nicholls State lineup for six innings, but when two runners came aboard in the seventh, he handed the lead to UTA's bullpen. Control problems and solid hitting by Nicholls State resulted in the surprising comeback. Sauter's day was finished with six innings of work, six hits and three runs allowed.
UTA got things started early when Brock Wilson led the game with an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error. David McLeod drove Wilson home with a double to the gap in left-center to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead in the first.
Michael Choice made it three consecutive hits to start the game with a run-scoring single up the middle to make it 2-0.
UTA made it 3-0 off Nicholls starter Joe Hagerty in the bottom of the third. Michael Choice got his second hit of the day in as many at-bats with one out, and Danny Slinkman followed with a line shot down the right-field line for a triple. The Mavericks knocked Hagerty out in the fourth after taking a 4-0 lead and loading the bases. Nicholls State reliever Justin Breaux got out of the jam with a strikeout to end the inning.
The teams traded runs in the fifth as UTA held a 5-1 lead. But just when it appeared the Mavericks would cruise to the victory, a five-run Nicholls State inning turned the tide. In that inning, the Colonels got two runners on against Sauter, then took advantage of four more singles and four wild pitches to take the 6-5 lead against two Maverick relievers.
