Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Bulldogs sweep Eastfield

Bulldogs sweep Eastfield

Justin Coats set a school record Monday in Texarkana College’s pair of victories over Eastfield at George Dobson Field.

Coats finished the doubleheader with seven hits, including three triples to run his season total to eight for a new school record. The Bulldogs took the opening game 9-1 and cruised to a 10-1 victory in the nightcap, improving to 32-22.

David Allday belted a grand slam home run in the third frame of the first game, and Lance Marvel made it back-to-back home runs with a solo shot. Gip Hendrix and Thomas Watson each added a pair of hits.

David Phillips had a three-run home run and drove in four RBI, and Hendrix added three hits in the nightcap. Trey Buck and Watson both contributed a pair of hits.



Game 1

Eastfield 001 000 0 — 1 5 0

Texarkana 015 201 x — 9 12 1

Jonathan Reeder, Landon Davidson (3), Caleb Kovatch (5), Casey Stone (6) and Travis Graves. Cody Wilson, Zach Fowler (7) and Lance Marvel. WP-Wilson. LP-Reeder. HR: TC-David Allday, 3rd, three on; Marvel, 3rd, none on.



Game 2

Eastfield 000 001 0 — 1 3 0

Texarkana 322 120 x — 10 17 4

Collin Loftin, Austin Good (2), Kelvin Garner (5), Casey Stone (6) and Nathan Reddick. Gip Hendrix, Zach Fowler (3), Cory Hill (5), Thomas Watson (6) and Lance Marvel. WP-Hendrix. LP-Loftin. HR: TC-David Phillips, 1st, two on.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Bulldogs take doubleheader, clinches playoff spot

Texarkana College vs. Lon Morris: Bulldogs take doubleheader, clinches playoff spot


Staff photo by Tanner Spendley Texarkana College’s Lance Marvel runs to third as Josh Gill makes his way to second. Marvel and Gill along with Trey Buck made it to home plate on the next play after Justin Coats hit a grand slam during the first game of a doubleheader against Lon Morris Saturday at George Dobson Field.
Texarakana College clinched a playoff spot with a sweep of Lon Morris Saturday at George Dobson Field.

With a six-run fourth inning, Texarkana College won the opener, 8-3. The Bulldogs belted three home runs en route to a 14-4 victory in the nightcap.

The teams were tied at 2-2, at the end of three innings before Justin Coats grand-slam home run highlighted the Bulldogs six-run fourth inning in the opener.

David Allday and Lance Marvel led off the inning with singles and Josh Gill drove in the first run with a single. Trey Buck then beat out a bunt to load the bases.

Coats then slammed relief pitcher Adam Leggett’s pitch over the left-field wall for a home run and a 7-2 lead. The final run came on a single by Gip Hendrix and an RBI single by Dean Malthouse.

The teams traded home runs in the first inning with Brad Cochrane hitting one for Lon Morris and winning pitcher David Phillips tied it at 1-1 with his shot to left field.

Texarkana went on top, 2-1, in the second and Lon Morris tied it up again, 2-2, in the third.

The Bulldogs (30-20, 16-12) banged out 10 hits with Malthouse and Gill leading the way with two each. Cochrane paced the visitors’ seven-hit atttack with the home run and three singles.

Cochrane gave Lon Morris a quick lead in the nightcap after doubles by Tell Ross and Cochrane. Cochrane later followed with two more hits, making it seven straight for the day.

Texarkana got the run back in the second on singles by Malthouse, Zach Fowler, and Marvel, and took the lead with an unearned run in the third.

The Bulldogs added two more runs on three hits in the fourth for a 4-1 lead. Marvel blasted a one-out home run, followed by a single by Allday, a double by Trey Buck, and sacrifice fly to right by Coats.

TC exploded for five runs in the eighth to run rule Lon Morris in the second game.

Phillips had a grand slam home run in the sixth, and Thomas Watson had a two-run blast in the five-run eighth. Watson finished with three hits and two RBI. Marvel had a solo shot in the fourth.

Allday added four hits for the Bulldogs.



FIRST GAME

Lon Morris 101 010 0 — 3 7 2

Texarkana 110 600 x — 8 10 2

Hector Plaza, Adam Leggett (4th) and Brad Cochrane. David Phillips, Cory Hill (6) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Phillips. LP-Leggett.

HR: Lon Morris, Brad Cochrane, 1st, none on. Texarkana, David Phillips, 1st, none on; Justin Coats, 4th, three on.



SECOND GAME

Lon Morris 100 010 20 — 4 12 1

Texarkana 011 214 15 — 14 16 1

Game called after eight innings, 10-run rule.

Ryan Mashinter and Steven Wostal. Josh Gill, Zach Gryder (7), Gip Hendrix (7) and Dean Malthouse.

HR: Texarkana, Lance Marvel, 4th, none on; David Phillips, 6th, 3 on; Thomas Watson, 8th, 1 on.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Playoffs hope alive as TC takes one from region champ

Playoffs hope alive as TC takes one from region champ


Staff photo by Evan Lewis Navarro’s Kyle Livingstone slides in safe under the attempted tag by Texarkana College catcher Dean Malthouse in the third inning of the first game in Wednesday’s doubleheader. Navarro won the opener, 17-7, but Texarkana claimed the split, 7-6.
There have no doubt been bigger wins in Texarkana College baseball history, but none that was needed more than the Bulldogs’ 7-6 victory over Navarro College in Wednesday’s second game at George Dobson Field.

Battered 17-7 in the opener, TC survived the nightcap as closer Cody Hill put down a Navarro uprising in the ninth inning. Texarkana’s first win over the Region XIV East Zone champions allowed the Bulldogs to maintain a one-game lead over Panola for the final playoff berth with two games to play. Panola split a home doubleheader with third-place Bossier Parish.

“That was a big-time, gut-check win right there,” said a relieved TC coach Will Bolt. “That’s a win that can lead to many, many more in a row. I was proud of the way we battled after we couldn’t stop them in the first game.”

Right-hander Justin Fowler checked Navarro’s leading bats on eight hits, leaving with a 5-3 lead after six innings despite being struck on the wrist of his pitching arm by a first-inning line drive.

“I thought it was broken,” Fowler said. “I couldn’t even squeeze Coach’s hand. But I got on the sideline and threw some, and it loosened up.”

Fowler was denied the victory when Brett Parsons homered in the top of the seventh inning after Jason Chowning’s third-strike wild pitch allowed what would have been the third out to reach first base.

But Chowning, TC’s No. 1 starter, settled down and the Bulldogs regained the lead in the bottom of the inning on back-to-back doubles by Dean Malthouse and Thomas Watson. They made it 7-5 in the eighth when Justin Coats singled home Josh Gill, who had singled and moved to second on a sacrifice.

Navarro (43-8, 23-3) loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth, and Hill gave up a sacrifice fly to Ross Hubbard to make it a one-run game. But Hill picked off pinch runner Anthony Washington and struck out the next batter.

“Justin Fowler did an outstanding job; he’s come a long way,” Bolt said. “A prime example was when he was hit by the line drive. He never buckled a bit, and came out and attacked the strike zone. Chowning wanted the ball, and it wasn’t perfect for him, but he kept us in the game. And Hill never blinked on the rundown. He got it to the athlete (Coats) and let him run the runner down. It was just a great team win.”

The Bulldogs had 15 hits in the nightcap, including a solo home run and single by Coats and two doubles by Watson. Trey Buck, David Phillips, Gip Hendrix, Malthouse and Gill also had two hits. Parsons had four of Navarro’s 12 hits.

Texarkana made a game out of the opener, pulling within 9-7 in the fourth inning, but the Bulldog bullpen couldn’t slow Navarro’s relentless bats. The visiting Bulldogs scored eight unanswered runs to put the game out of reach.

Most of the damage was done by the long ball. Navarro hit five home runs, three of them by Scott Livingstone, who finished with eight runs batted in. Zach Grichor and Caleb Marx hit solo homers.

TC managed 12 hits, 11 off Navarro’s No. 1 starter Bryan Bingham, who still pitched five innings to improve to 11-0 on the season. Hendrix hit his sixth homer in the third inning and Phillips his 14th in the fourth, both with one runner aboard.

But the first game was all about Navarro’s bats. The Bulldogs cranked out 17 hits, including three each by Grichor, Livingstone, Hubbard and Marx.

TC starter Zach Fowler lasted just 3 2/3 innings and yielded eight runs, seven earned. Relievers Cody Wilson and Zach Gryder were treated similarly by NC’s torrid hitters. Coats tripled and singed twice in four at-bats to lead TC at the plate. Hendrix had a single to go with his home run, and Gill, who recently committed to play next year at Louisiana-Monroe, doubled twice, driving in a run.

The Bulldogs can clinch first-place by sweeping last-place Lon Morris on Saturday at home.



FIRST GAME

Navarro College 102 643 1 — 17 17 1

Texarkana College 004 300 0 — 7 12 2

Bryan Bingham, Jeff Thompson (6), Chad McIn (7) and Mark Mayfield. Zach Fowler, Cody Wilson (4), Zach Gryder (5) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Bingham (11-0). LP-Fowler (5-4). HR: NC-Zach Grichor, 3rd, none on;

Scott Livingstone, 4th, 2 on; Livingstone, 5th, 2 on; Livingstone, 6th, 1 on; Caleb Marx, 7th, none on. TC-Gip Hendrix (6), 3rd, 1 on; David Phillips (14), 4th 1 on.



SECOND GAME

Navarro College 020 010 201 — 6 12 1

Texarkana College 100 013 11x — 7 14 0

Travis Dirk, Brian Shore (6) and Jordan Kopycinski, Mark Mayfield (9). Justin Fowler, Jason Chowning (7), Cory Hill (9) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Chowning. LP-Shore.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Bulldogs split with Panola

Bulldogs split with Panola


Staff photo by Tanner Spendley Panola College’s Brandon Choate slides into third in front of Texarkana College’s Thomas Watson Saturday at George Dobson Field. The Bulldogs won the first game of a doubleheader, 2-1, but dropped the nightcap, 4-3.
With series remaining against first-place Navarro College and last-place Lon Morris—all at home—Texarkana College could have made it easy on itself with a sweep of Panola College Saturday at George Dobson Field.

Now if they are to qualify for the Region XIV tournament, the Bulldogs will have to it the hard way after blowing early scoring opportunities in a 4-3, second-game loss to the Ponies.

David Allday’s walk-off RBI single with one out in the bottom of the seventh gave TC and left-hander David Phillips a 2-1 win in the opener.

So, instead of a 3-game lead over Panola (29-18, 12-12) with four East Zone games to play, the Bulldogs (27-19, 13-11) hold a scant one-game edge over the Ponies in the battle for the fourth playoff spot.

“We had the opportunity to really make it tough on them (Panola),” said TC coach Will Bolt. “We got the walk-off hit in the first game, and I thought we took the momentum into the second when we got the three-run homer (Phillips) in the first inning. But then we kind of sat on the lead.”

Much of the credit for Panola can go to Carthage right-hander Kory Cleveland, who came on with two outs in the second inning due to an injury to starter Travis Reagan. Cleveland allowed just one hit over the next 6 2/3 innings, striking out two and walking two.

“He did a good job working his fastball to both sides of the plate,” Bolt said. “He didn’t have overpowering stuff, but we just didn’t do a good-enough job at the plate. He gave us pitches to hit, but we just got underneath them. You have to hit line drives, and we hit too many lazy flyballs.”

Phillips’ 13th homer of the season over the center field wall with two aboard in the bottom of the first came after a two-out error kept the inning alive.

The two-out drive scored Trey Buck, who had singled, and Justin Coats, who had walked. But Lance Marvel’s single in the second and Buck’s second hit in the fourth were all the Bulldogs could muster the rest of the way.

It appeared the three first-inning runs would be all that were needed for starter Jason Chowning, who breezed into the seventh with the lead before Panola put together four hits to tie the game. Former Hooks standout Brandon Choate started the rally with a single to left, and scored the first run.

Josh Gill came on with the score tied and kept it that way by retiring the two batters he faced, but he gave up a leadoff double to Chase Wier to start the eighth and took the loss when Wier eventually scored on a groundout off reliever Cory Hill.

“Chowning deserved to win,” Bolt said. “We just didn’t get him any runs early when we had the right guys up. We just didn’t get it done.”

Phillips got it done in the opener, scattering five hits, including a solo home run by Mason Denson, tying the game on the first pitch of the top of the seventh inning.

But with one out in the bottom of the inning, Dean Malthouse singled down the right-field line and Thomas Watson was hit by a pitch. Allday then hit the first pitch from loser Scott Copeland on the ground between third base and shortstop, and Malthouse scampered home with the game winner.

Lance Marvel’s sacrifice fly scored Malthouse from third base with the game’s first run in the fifth inning.

Phillips gave up five hits, struck out three and walked one. Chowning surrendred six hits, fanned seven and walked two in the nightcap.

“I thought we pitched well and played good defense today,” Bolt said. “Our pitchers kept the ball around the zone and we made some good plays in the field. We just didn’t get the timely hits.”

Watson was 2 for 2 with a double in the opener. Zach Fowler also had a double.

Panola ends the season with 2-game series against second-place Bossier Parish and seventh-place Northeast Texas Community College.



FIRST GAME

Panola College 000 000 1 — 1 5 1

Texarkana 000 010 1 — 2 5 0

One out when winning run scored.

Scott Copeland and Brandon Choate. David Phillips and Dean Malthouse. WP-Phillips. LP-Copeland. HR: PC-Mason Denson, 7th, none on.



SECOND GAME

Panola College 100 000 210 — 4 7 1

Texarkana 300 000 000 — 3 5 1

Travis Reagan, Kory Cleveland (2), Aaron Wilkerson (8) and Brandon Choate. Jason Chowning, Josh Gill (7), Cory Hill (8) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Cleveland. LP-Gill. HR: TC-David Phillips (13), 1st, 2 on.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Eights are enough as TC sweeps Paris

Eights are enough as TC sweeps Paris

PARIS, Texas—Texarkana College improved its playoff prospects Wednesday with a sweep over Paris.

The Bulldogs took the opening game, 8-4, and cruised to an 8-2 victory in the nightcap. TC improves to 26-18 overall and 12-10 in conference action.

David Phillips had a two-run double, and Trey Buck added two RBIs to lead Texarkana College to a victory in the first game. Justin Coats contributed a double. Zach Fowler earned the victory.

Justin Fowler notched the win for the Bulldogs in the second contest, and Justin Coats finished 2 for 4 with a double and an RBI. Gip Hendrix had a pair of hits and two RBIs, and Dean Malthouse had two hits.

TC returns to action Saturday with a doubleheader against Panola.





Game 1

Texarkana College 050 003 0 — 8 8 5

Paris 003 010 0 — 4 10 3

Zach Fowler, Cory Hill (7) and Dean Malthouse. Zach Snead, Cole White (7) and Beall Bentley. WP-Fowler. LP-Snead.



Game 2

Texarkana College 131 100 101 — 8 9 1

Paris 000 000 020 — 2 8 3

Justin Fowler and Dean Malthouse. Jared Carruth and Beall Bentley. WP-Fowler. LP-Carruth. HR: PAR-Nick Stelte, 8th, 1 on.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Bulldogs romp in Game 2

Bulldogs romp in Game 2

LUFKIN, Texas—Texarkana College snapped Angelina’s 11-game conference winning streak Wednesday.

The Bulldogs pounded out 20 hits in their 13-7 victory in Game 2. Trey Buck and Thomas Watson each had a home run, and Gip Hendrix finished 3 for 5 at the plate. Justin Coats added a triple, a single and three RBIs. Lance Marvel added three hits, and David Allday contributed a pair of hits.

Corey Hill picked up the win on the hill in relief of Justin Fowler. The Bulldogs rallied for five runs in their final at-bat to pull away from the Roadrunners, and Watson nailed it down in the ninth.

Texarkana College (22-17, 8-10) dropped the opening game, 6-5. Watson finished with three hits and two RBIs, and Marvel added two hits, including a double. Hendrix had a pair of doubles, and Buck finished with two singles.

Josh Gill suffered the loss.



Texarkana College 010 202 0 — 5 13 0

Angelina 110 022 x — 6 10 2

Zach Fowler, Josh Gill (6), Corey Hill (6) and Dean Malthouse. Frank Corolla, Tanner Hamilton (6), Chase Hernandez (7) and Joey Latulippe. WP-Tanner Hamilton. LP-Gill. HR: Ang-Latulippe, 2nd, none on; Latulippe, 6th, none on; Ryan Kelley, 6th, none on.



Texarkana College 110 023 015 — 13 20 1

Angelina 001 100 320 — 7 10 1

Justin Fowler, Corey Hill (7), Thomas Watson (9) and Dean Malthouse. Corey Benavides, Daniel Franchois (6) and Ryland Parker (9), Kyle Cassidy (9), Chase Barrera (9) and Bryan Mallet. WP-Hill. LP-Franchois. HR: TC-Trey Buck, 1st, none on; Thomas Watson, 9th, 2 on. Ang-Chris Laira, 3rd, none on; Chris Andreas, 7th, none on; Mark Serna, 8th, 1 on.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Bossier Parish inflicts doubleheader loss on Bulldogs

Bossier Parish inflicts doubleheader loss on Bulldogs


Staff photo by Tanner Spendley Texarkana College’s Gip Hendrix slides into second as the ball gets by Bossier Parish’s Garrett Hammond during the second game of a doubleheader Sunday at Texas High. Bossier Parish swept the Bulldogs, 5-0 and 6-5.
It would be hard to point a finger at any one reason for Texarkana College’s doubleheader loss to visiting Bossier Parish Community College Sunday.

Lack of clutch hitting and pitching, and poor defense all played roles in the 5-0, 6-5 losses at Texas High’s Tiger Field, the second time the Cavaliers have swept the Bulldogs this season.

“We weren’t very competitive, and that’s something I addressed between the games and after the last game,” said TC coach Will Bolt. “Two things you can control are effort and attitude, and I don’t think we did that to the best of our abilities today.”

TC, which has lost six of its last eight games, dropped to 22-17 overall and, more importantly 7-9 in the Region XIV East Zone standings. The Bulldogs trail third-place BPCC (23-16, 10-6) by three games and are in a dogfight with Paris Junior College and Panola College for the fourth playoff berth.

Bossier ace T. J. Forrest, a University of Arkansas recruit, blanked TC in the opener, marking the third shutout in six games for the Bulldogs. Forrest, a hard-throwing right-hander, allowed five hits, struck out six and walked one.

David Phillips gave up just three hits and just one earned run in five innings as the TC defense committed five errors. Thomas Watson was touched for three hits and two runs in the sixth, and Zach Gryder pitched a scoreless seventh.

Lance West had a two-run single and David Morgan a solo homer for the Cavs. Five Bulldogs had one hit each, including doubles by Justin Coats and Dean Malthouse.

Malthouse’s double over the third-base bag followed a lead-off single by Gip Hendrix in the second inning, but the runners were stranded at second and third when Forrest retired the next three batters without the ball leaving the infield.

“To me, that pretty much set the tone for the game,” said Bulldogs coach Will Bolt. “We’ve got runners at second and third with nobody out and guys coming up who had driven in a ton of runs. But we don’t get the job done. I don’t think we had any fight in us after that point.”

Hendrix’s two-run double to right field gave Texarkana its first lead of the day in the first inning of the nightcap. But Bossier Parish scored single runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings off TC ace Jason Chowning, who struggled with his control, walking seven and hitting a batter in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out six and allowed four hits.

Josh Gill came on to get the final out on a back-hand stab by third baseman Thomas Watson, who threw out pinch-hitter Jacob Rhodes with the bases loaded.

The Bulldogs took Chowning off the Hook with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Hendrix tripled home Coats, who had singled, then scored on Malthouse’s double, all coming in the first inning of relief by left-hander Moses Munoz. But the next two batters struck out, standing Malthouse at second.

Two TC errors contributed to Bossier’s three-run sixth that put the Cavs ahead to stay. Joey Ford tripled in one run, then scored on an RBI single by K. W. Smith, who advanced on two wild pitches and scored on one of the errors.

Cody Wilson came on to pitch two scoreless innings, and closer Cory Hill did the same in the ninth.

“Wilson did a great job out of the pen,” Bolt said. “He kept them where they were at and gave us a chance. I thought for the most part, Gill did a good job and, while Chowning didn’t have command of his pitches, to his credit he pitched out of a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the fourth.”

TC crept within one when David Phillips lofted a solo home run high over the right-field bullpen in the seventh, but the Bulldogs went quietly in the eighth and ninth innings.

Phillips, Henderix and Coats each had two hits for TC, as did Ford and Smith for Bossier Parish.



FIRST GAME

Bossier Parish 001 022 0 — 5 6 0

Texarkana 000 000 0 — 0 5 5

T. J. Forrest and Brannin Hagan. David Phillips, Thomas Watson (6), Zach Gryder (7) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Forrest. LP-Phillips. HR: BP-David Morgan, 5th, none on.



SECOND GAME

Bossier Parish 001 113 000 — 6 8 4

Texarkana 200 020 100 — 5 8 3

Jordan LeGros, Moses Munoz (5), Eric Kirkland (8) and Michael Pettito. Jason Chowning, Josh Gill (5), Cody Wilson (7), Cory Hill (9) and Dean Malthouse. WP-Munoz. LP-Gill. HR: TC-David Phillips, 7th, none on.

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Texarkana College fights back for split

Texarkana College fights back for split

It was a case of missed opportunities for Texarkana College as the Bulldogs dropped a 2-1 decision in its opening game against San Jacinto Saturday at Spring Lake Park.

TC rallied back against the Coyotes in the nightcap to post an 11-10 win in 12 innings for the split.

The Bulldogs (22-15, 10-5) host Blinn College (30-9, 15-3), which leads the Region XIV South Zone, in another doubleheader today at 11 a.m.



FIRST GAME

San Jacinto 2, Texarkana 1

The Coyotes took advantage of two big errors in the fourth inning for its only runs, while the Bulldogs missed several scoring opportunities. TC stranded nine runners on base, wasting a strong pitching performance by Lacey Lang.

A sophomore right-hander, Lang struck out 10 and allowed just three hits. Both runs were unearned, due to the two errors in the Coyotes’ two-run, fourth.

In the Coyotes’ fourth, Tasha Rotramel led off with a single and Janet Rendon reached on an error.

Brittany Boren sacrificed the runners to second and third. Winning pitcher Kelsey McClain hit a slow roller to first and the throw home was high, and both runners scored on the play.

Texarkana’s only run came in the bottom half of the fourth on a home run by Misti Cosby over the centerfield fence.

After the home run, Lang and Roxanna Holley singled and a wild pitch put runners on second and third with just one out. But McClain retired the next two batters on a groundout and strikeout.

The Bulldogs missed another great opportunity in the sixth. A base hit by Lang was followed by an error and a walk to load the bases with one out. Again, McClain got out of the inning without further damage.



San Jacinto 000 200 0 — 2 3 1

Texarkana 000 100 0 — 1 6 4

Kelsey McClain and Krystal Plummer. Lacey Lang and Kristyn Adney. WP-McClain. LP-Lang. HR: Texarkana, Cosby, 4th, none on.



SECOND GAME

Texarkana 11, San Jacinto 10

The visitors took a 5-0 lead with two runs in the first inning and three more in the second, knocking out TC starter Jessica Upchurch. Lang came on in relief and went the rest of the way.

Texarkana fought back with a single run in the third and added two more in fourth to pull within, 5-3.

San Jacinto took a 6-3 lead with a run in the top of the fifth before the Bulldogs bounced back to tie it up with three runs in the bottom half.

Upchurch led off the fifth, reaching on an error and Haley Nix followed with a single. Cosby ripped a single to right and when the ball got past the rightfielder, both runners scored. With one away, Lang blooped a hit over the shortstop to drive in Cosby with the tying run.

Each team added a pair of runs in the sixth to keep the scored tied, 8-8. Nix drove in the first run with a double to centerfield and Cosby’s single tied the game.

Neither team scored in the seventh, sending the game into extra innings.

San Jacinto went on top with two runs in the eighth on an RBI single by Brittany Boren and a throwing error by the pitcher on the next batter allowed Boren to score.

The never-say-die Bulldogs fought back with two runs on two hits to tie the game again, 10-10.

With one away, Upchurch struck out, but reached when the ball got past the catcher. Nix followed with a single and Cosby drove in both runners with a double to right-center.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Texarkana splits with Lon Morris

Texarkana splits with Lon Morris

JACKSONVILLE, Texas—Texarkana College had to settle for a split with last-place Lon Morris Wednesday, bouncing back for an 18-5 victory in the second game after a 4-0 loss in the opener.

The Bulldogs are 22-15 overall and 7-7 in the Region XIV East Zone.

Michael Russo blanked TC on six hits in the opener. It was the second straight series that the hard-hitting Bulldogs, who lead the zone in hitting, have been shut out.

Zach Fowler took the loss, giving up seven hits and all four runs in four innings. Josh Gill struck out four in two innings of relief.

Gip Hendrix doubled and singled, Justin Coats had two singles and David Phillips a double for TC.

TC pounded out 16 hits in the second game, but trailed 3-2 after six innings. But the Bulldogs scored six runs in each of the seventh and eighth inning, the seventh highlighted by Hendrix’s 3-run home run and a 2-run blast by Gill. Justin Coats had a solo homer in the first inning.

Justin Fowler went seven innings, striking out six and walking one, to pick up the win. Thomas Watson pitched the eighth and Cory Hill the ninth, neither surrendering a run.

Coats led the way at the plate with four hits in five at-bats, including his home run and a triple. He drove in three runs. Hendrix drove in seven runs with his home run and two singles, Gill had two singles to go with his homer, Phillips and Trevor Rainey had RBI doubles and Dean Malthouse a double.

Lon Morris finished the day at 15-24 and 2-12.

Texarkana starts the second round of zone play Saturday, hosting Bossier Parish Community College at noon.