SAN ANTONIO – No. 24 Florida Atlantic University baseball and UTSA traded leads in the eighth and ninth, but key pitching and defense led to a
Pedro Pages three-run home run in the 12th for an 8-5 Owl win in the opener of the Conference USA set at Roadrunner Field.
Head Coach
John McCormack:
"Wow, what a game. Couldn't ask for more drama than tonight. It just shows you what a great game baseball is, where Zach (Schneider) wasn't great to start, then he was amazing to close the game out. And Pedro (Pages) didn't have a great night, then he hits the three-run homer. I always say this game is going to give you an opportunity, again. Whether it be the next day or later in the game, and the guys capitalized on it. I thought we played tough and gritty in tough conditions. I'm proud of the guys, we hung in there and we really needed tonight's win to keep pace."
The Turning Point
Trailing 2-1, UTSA (23-26, 10-14 C-USA) scored three times with two outs in the eighth for a 4-2 advantage. FAU (33-16, 18-7 C-USA) battled back to load the bases with no one out in the ninth. A fielder's choice, with an error on top of it, scored two to tie it, and a sacrifice fly by
Joe Montes made it 5-4 Owls. In the bottom half, an RBI single tied it, and the Roadrunners had the bases loaded and one out. But
Zach Schneider got a strikeout and induced a groundout to third to send it to extras.
The Finish
Both teams were held off the scoreboard in the 10th and 11th, with the Owls aided by an inning-ending double play with runners on the corners in the former.
Andru Summerall led the FAU 12th off with a walk, and one out later,
Mitchell Hartigan singled through the right side. On a 2-2 pitch, Pages launched a no-doubt shot halfway up the netting beyond the leftfield fence for the lead. Though UTSA put two on with one out in the bottom half, two straight flyouts to
Eric Rivera in centerfield stranded the 16th and 17th Roadrunners on the night.
The Arms
- Blake Sanderson pitched great to start, six innings of seven-hit, one-run ball with four strikeouts
- Vince Coletti threw a scoreless seventh before giving way to Schneider in the eighth
- Schneider (4-3) picked up the victory with a 4 2/3-inning stint
The Bats
- Pages and Summerall each drove in three; Summerall had put the Owls on the board with a two-out, two-run single with the bases loaded in the seventh
- Wilfredo Alvarez continued his hot-hitting stretch as of late with two hits, and scored twice
- Bobby Morgensen also had two hits and reached three times
Saturday's game is set for a 5 p.m. Eastern start (4 p.m. locally in San Antonio). This upcoming Tuesday, May 14, is the return home vs. UCF, with tickets available by calling 1-866-FAU-OWLS or going to
baseball's ticket website.