PLAINVIEW, Texas — The McPherson College Bulldogs pick up another victory on the road against Wayland Baptist University on Saturday, ending the four game series with two wins and two losses to a gritty Pioneers team.
Game one saw the pitchers take control early among some spotty defense as Alex Escobar and Tyler Wade battled it out for their respective clubs. Escobar finished after five innings, allowing zero earned runs while striking out six Pioneer batters. On the home side, Wade threw a complete game, striking out ten Bulldogs hitters on his way to collecting his second win of the year as the Pioneers went on to win 5-0.
In the final game of the series, the Bulldogs jumped out to an early 2-0 lead following RBI singles from Antonio Fernandez and Andres Artola Jr. in the top of the first. The Bulldogs extended their lead in the second inning as Caleb Feuerstake drove a pitch into the right center field gap to score a run. Then Antonio Fernandez drove home Feuerstake on the next pitch for his second RBI single of the game.
The Pioneers battled back, scoring two runs in the second and one run in the fourth as Tyler Norris continued to battle for the Bulldogs on the mound. Norris finished his day after his fifth inning of work, allowing three runs while striking out four Pioneer hitters. A controversial sixth inning lead the Pioneers back to tie the game at 5-5 headed to the seventh inning.
The bottom of the seventh saw Kurt Golubski add to his stellar defensive day by throwing out the would-be game winning run at home plate from right field to push the game into extra innings. After a scoreless eighth on both sides, Antonio Fernandez had one last big swing to take as he blasted an opposite field home run into the Bulldogs bullpen to give McPherson the lead in the ninth inning. Right-Handed Pitcher Noah Carpenter closed the door in the ninth to collect his first win of the year and earn the Bulldogs a 6-5 extra innings win to split the series.
The Bulldogs are poised to host their Home Opener on Monday (Feb. 20th) as visiting Park University comes to town. First pitch is scheduled for 1pm at Bulldog Park.
