March 14, 2009
The skies cleared up with just an overcast forecast and the Broncs got in their two games against Illinois State at Nelson W. Wolff Stadium in San Antonio, Texas where UTPA dropped the first contest 9-0 and the second 10-2 this Saturday (Mar. 14) afternoon.
"It is tough to win a game when your pitching isn't to par. Our position players tried but again it's tough when you don't have arms," said head coach Manny Mantrana. "Losing two of our starters hurt us today but it will now give the other players an opportunity to earn a spot on the starting lineup."
Illinois State 9, UTPA 0
It was a rough outing for the Broncs as they went scoreless against the Redbirds in game one while giving up 10 hits and recording two errors.
The Broncs gave up four runs in two frames (second and third inning) while giving up another three in the fifth with two on an error by Abraham Garcia. The Redbirds scored solo runs in the seventh and eighth to wrap up game one.
Abraham Garcia, Ryan Vest and Bonham Hough all finished 1-for-3 in game one with Hough and Vest adding doubles. Nathan Molina, who struck out five batters and walked three, posted the loss to put him at 0-3 for the season.
Illinois State's Anthony Ruffolo finished 2-for-2 with three RBI while starting pitcher Corey Maines earned the win.
Illinois State 10, UTPA 2
The Broncs started off strong in game two as they put up two runs in the opening inning on a RBI single to left field by Jordan Rutenbar allowing Bonham Hough to score. On the next play, designated hitter Gabriel Salinas scored on an error by the shortstop to give the Broncs a 2-0 lead.
The Broncs then gave up six runs in two frames to give the Redbirds a 6-2 advantage going into the fourth.
Both the Redbirds and Broncs were scoreless for the next three innings, but the Broncs then allowed Illinois State to score two more runs in the seventh with another two in the eighth to wrap up game two.
Freshman Iradier Hernandez finished game two 3-for-4 with Anthony Garcia grabbing the loss for the Broncs to put him at 0-3 for the season.
The Broncs will wrap up the Irish Classic on Sunday, March 15 with back-to-back games against Notre Dame with first pitch slated for 10:00 a.m. CT.
UTPA Sports Information
