March 18, 2007
Box Score
The University of Texas-Pan American baseball team needed extra innings to put away the University of Northern Colorado by a score of 7-6 at the Edinburg Baseball Stadium on Sunday (Mar. 18) in Edinburg, TX.
The Broncs improved to 11-19 with the ten-inning victory while the Bears dropped to 6-9 on the season.
Northern Colorado started the game with a bang when the fourth batter in the lineup Kevin Sandberg hit a two-run home run with two outs. Sandberg's first homer of the season put the Bears up by a score of 2-0 in the first inning of play.
The Bears added to their run total in the top of the third inning on a sacrifice fly from Cory Morales that scored Nate Saylor from third to go up by a 3-0 count.
It took the Broncs four innings and a solo home run from freshman Dominic Tognietti (Katy, TX/James E. Taylor H.S.) to get on the board, making it a 3-1 ball game. The blast was the UTPA newcomer's third home run of the season, and the first given up by Northern Colorado hurler Dan Kazell this season.
The Bears picked up one run on one hit in the top of the sixth frame to make the score 4-1. The solo home run off the bat of Zach Brockman was his second homer of the season, and the fourth given up by UTPA starter Cody Cisper (Peggs, OK/Northeastern State Univ.).
UTPA used a four hit four run sixth inning to take a 5-4 lead in the ball game. After a Roly Gonzalez (Miami, FL/UNC-Greensboro) double to the left field corner, Jeremy Johnson (League City, TX/Alvin J.C.) hit an RBI single up the middle of the infield to close the gap.
When Osiel Flores (Mission, TX/UT-Brownsville) hit a slow roller down the left field line in the sixth frame to bring Johnson home, the game was knotted at four runs apiece, prompting a pitching change by the Bears.
The call to the bullpen was for Tyler Pearson who gave up a sacrifice fly to Abraham Garcia (McAllen, TX/McAllen H.S.) that plated Patrick Brooks (Vallejo, CA/Santa Rosa J.C.), and gave the Broncs their first lead of the game.
With just three outs needed to end the game, the Broncs called on closer Steven Davila (Weslaco, TX/Weslaco H.S.) to shut the door on the Bears. Davila recorded the first two outs, and got the following two batters in a hole with two strikes but couldn't get the third to end the game early.
The Bears picked up two runs on two hits, including a two RBI single through the left side courtesy of Adam Symons that drove in the go ahead run to make the score 6-5.
Staring at the face of defeat, the Broncs tied the game at six runs apiece in the bottom of the ninth. Garcia lead-off the inning, being walked and then advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Matt Guzman (Corpus Christi, TX/UT-San Antonio). A Blake Whittlesey (Marble Falls, TX/UT-Brownsville) single advanced Garcia to third before a perfectly laid sacrifice bunt from Gonzalez brought home Garcia for the tying run, sending the game to extra innings.
In the bottom of the tenth inning, Brooks led off the inning with a double to left field before Garcia hit a pop-fly to short that the Bears couldn't decide on that allowed Brooks to make it home for the game-winning run.
Davila recorded his first win of the season (1-4) while Northern Colorado
hurler Pearson fell to 0-3.
Gonzalez continued his offensive prowess, going three-for-five at the plate while adding one RBI. From the designated hitter spot on the lineup, Garcia came on strong late in the game, going one-for-three and picking up two RBI while scoring one run.
The Broncs return to action on Tuesday (Mar. 20) when they face Southland Conference-foe Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi in Corpus Christi, TX with the game slated to begin at 6:00 p.m.
UTPA Sports Information
