Support UTPA Baseball

Box Score

Photo Gallery

EDINBURG – The University of Texas-Pan American Broncs baseball team scored five runs in the bottom of the fifth to come from behind and beat the New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders 8-7 in seven innings in game one of a doubleheader on Saturday at Edinburg Baseball Stadium.
 
Trailing 3-1, Shane Klemcke led off the fifth with a single against Mark Leiter Jr. (4-6). Derek Hagy then drew the first of three four-pitch walks in the inning. Ball four was a wild pitch, allowing Klemcke to reach third. One out later, Shane Ammon hit a grounder back to the mound. Leiter threw to second for the force, but the relay throw wasn't in time, allowing Klemcke to score. Leiter threw the next eight pitches out of the zone to walk Alex Howe and Dillon Engelhart. Will Klausing followed with his third hit of the game, a two-run double to give the Broncs the lead. Alberto Morales then hit a two-run single to cap the inning at 6-3.
 
Morales' hit was the first by a right-handed batter against Leiter. The Broncs (21-18, 12-2 Great West Conference) got one more hit by a righty against Leiter, as Riley Goulding hit an RBI-single and later scored during a two-run sixth that made it 8-4.
 
That hit extended Goulding's hitting streak to 12 games as he finished 1-for-3 with an RBI. He is now 16-for-36 (.444) over the last 12 games, during which time the Broncs are 9-3.
 
The Highlanders (14-23, 6-8 GWC) tried to come back in the top of the seventh, loading the bases with nobody out to knock out Aaron Moore. La Joya alum Guadalupe Barrera came in and allowed a two-run single to Matt Weckerle. One out later, Stephan Halibej hit an RBI-single to put runners on the corners and make it a one-run game. Tom Bouck was hit by a pitch to load the bases, but Jeff Peterson grounded into a double play to end the game.
 
It was Barrera's first save of the season and the 10^th of his career, the fourth most in program history.
 
Matt Daniels (1-4) picked up his first-career win by pitching two innings of relief, allowing one run on one hit, a home run by Ed Charlton, and striking out three.
 
The Broncs and Highlanders play game two of this doubleheader in about 30 minutes.