Box Score

By Ben Rikard | UTAMavs.com

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Jacob Moreland allowed just two runs in 5.2 innings of relief and the UT Arlington Mavericks never trailed in taking their second straight game from Little Rock with a 6-4 win at Gary Hogan Field in the series rubber match on Sunday afternoon.

The UTA (25-24, 11-13 SBC) senior reliever entered with one out in the fourth inning after the Trojans (23-22, 14-10 SBC) had cut the Maverick lead to 3-2 and proceeded to keep Little Rock off the board until the ninth before closing it out to run his record to 4-0 for the season.

The series win gives UTA its third consecutive series win on the road.

Meanwhile, the Maverick offense continued to produce, reaching double-digits in hits for the third straight game and pushing across six runs despite leaving 14 men on base for the game. Colton Turner, a day removed from tying a school record with eight RBI on Saturday, drove in two more with a double and a sacrifice fly while Cody Farrell finished with a 3-for-4 day that included an RBI and was a home run short of the cycle.

For the second straight game every Maverick hitter in the lineup reached base at least once, with eight collecting at least one hit.

Reed Willenborg took the loss for the Trojans, falling to 0-2 for the season after allowing three runs in 3.2 innings with four strikeouts and five walks. The Little Rock offense kept the pressure on throughout the day, equaling UTA with 11 hits, including three from Hayden Martin and Ty Gunter, and two more from Ryan Scott.

The Mavs took advantage of Noah Vaughan reaching on a wild pitch on a strikeout that would have ended the second inning when Farrell tripled him home to put UTA up 1-0. UTA added two more in the fourth without putting the ball in play, getting four straight walks and a hit-by-pitch with two outs in the frame to go up 3-0 with RJ Williams and Brady Cox picking up RBI in the inning.

Little Rock answered with two runs in the bottom half of the fourth on a two-run double from Cameron Knight before Moreland entered to get a pair of fly outs and keep the tying run at second base and the Mavs up 3-2.

Turner picked up the first of his two RBI on the day with a double to score Darien McLemore in the top of the fifth and an inning later he upped the advantage to 5-2 with a sacrifice fly to score Cox.

Little Rock put together a scoring threat of their own in the fifth after the Mavs intentionally walked Scott with a base open and two outs and the score still at 4-2, but Moreland got Dalton Thomas to ground out to avoid any damage. Two innings later they threatened again after the Mavs elected to face Thomas again following another intentional pass to Scott that loaded the bases with two outs, but again Moreland was able to dispose of the Trojan slugger with a routine fly out to left field to keep UTA ahead with a 5-2 edge.

UTA added an insurance run in the visiting half of the ninth with a two-out rally, getting a two-out double from Farrell before freshman Josh Minjarez delivered a single to left to plate him and give Moreland a 6-2 cushion entering the ninth.

Things got dicey in the final frame as the Trojans cut the lead to 6-3 after three of the first four hitters of the inning hit safely. Thomas again found himself at the plate for Little Rock as the potential run, but could only muster a sacrifice fly before Moreland got Nik Gifford to ground out routinely to short stop for the game's final out.

UTA will next make its first trip to Boone, N.C., next weekend for a series at Appalachian State beginning Friday.