TLU Baseball Blasts Dallas in Saturday Doubleheader in Historic Outing

IRVING, Texas -- TLU Baseball cruised to a series win against Dallas on Saturday with 9-4 and 29-6 victories at UD Baseball Field in Irving, Texas. The Bulldogs (22-13, 13-4 SCAC), who hit five home runs across the two games, will go for the series sweep of the Crusaders on Sunday at 1 PM.

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Brendan Beard (Coldspring/Coldspring-Oakhurst) pitched 4.2 shutout innings and allowed just one hit. Beard struck out five batters and issued no walks to pick up his third win of the season. Blade Strzelczyk (San Antonio/East Central) got the start and threw 4.1 innings and allowed four runs on six hits, striking out three batters.

Asher Bonnell (Round Rock/Stony Point), last week's SCAC Hitter of the Week, went 4-for-4 with two RBI and three runs scored, while Blake Cappadona (Mont Belvieu/Barbers Hill) went 2-for-4 with one homer, three RBI and two runs. Tyler Post (San Antonio/Johnson) also drove in three runs.

Dallas opened the game with two runs scored in the first. TLU took the lead in the third behind an RBI single from Bonnell and a three-run homer from Blake Cappadona to make the score 4-2.

A two-run home run from the Crusaders in the third tied the game 4-all. Asher Bonnell would hit another RBI single as the Bulldogs regained the lead 5-4.

Tyler Post would extend the lead further with a two-RBI single as the Bulldogs lead extended to 7-4.

Post would drive in his third run of the game with an eighth inning sacrifice fly. Niko Garcia (Houston/Langham Creek) had his first hit of the game, an RBI single to right center, to bring the game to its final score of 9-4.

The Bulldogs were relentless at the plate in game two, hammering out 25 hits, including four home runs. The 29-run mark marks the most runs scored since becoming an NCAA institution. The Bulldogs would score in all seven innings in the run-rule victory. Eighteen of the Bulldogs 29 runs would come with two outs. Texas Lutheran has won by run-rule in five of their last seven games.

Aric Vasquez (San Antonio/Brandeis) set the table, going 4-for-5 with five runs scored, one shy of matching the single-game record held by Nathan Kimball set in 2022 against National Christian. Niko Garcia was 4-for-6 with three RBI and four runs scored. Tyler Post was 3-for-5 with a homer, a career-high six RBI, and three runs scored. Junior Chance Greene (Round Rock/Stony Point) had a career day hitting his first two career home runs - including a grand slam - driving in seven runs, one shy of the TLU single-game record last achieved by Jeremy Macklin in 2009, and scoring three runs. Kolby Kinkade (Corsicana/Corsicana) went 1-for-1 with a solo home run, the first of his career.

Diego Vinton (Richmond/George Ranch) pitched five innings and allowed six runs (five earned) on six hits to pick up the win and improve to 4-2 on the season.

Texas Lutheran kept their bats hot from game one, scoring two runs in the first via a Tyler Post sacrifice fly and an RBI single from Alec Sanchez (Waxahachie/Waxahachie).

Dallas got a run back in the bottom of the inning on an RBI sacrifice bunt to make the score 2-1.

Texas Lutheran came right back in the second inning with an RBI single from Niko Garcia to extend their lead to 3-1.

The Bulldogs offense kept it up in the third, exploding for 10 runs on four hits and batting around in the inning. After back-to-back walks to start the inning, the Crusaders would record one out before Alec Sanchez would score on an Asher Bonnell fielder's choice. The remaining nine runs would all come with two outs. After loading the bases, Niko Garcia would drive in two runs with an RBI single and Tyler post would follow with an RBI single of his own before Chance Greene would clear the bases with a three-run homer, the first of his collegiate career. Kyle Gates (La Vernia/La Vernia) would drive in Alec Sanchez with an RBI single and Randy Huerta (New Braunfels/New Braunfels) would score on a wild pitch to make the score 13-1.

A trio of doubles would help the Crusaders cut into the massive Bulldogs lead in the bottom of the inning, shrinking the lead to 13-5.

TLU scored three more runs on four hits in the fourth inning to extend the lead out to 16-5. Three straight singles would start the inning before a two out rally would score three more runs. Alec Sanchez was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to drive in a run before Randy Huerta would double down the left field line to score Niko Garcia and Aric Vasquez.

The Bulldogs did not let up, hitting home runs in the fifth and sixth innings to surpass the 20-run mark for the second time this season. Tyler Post hit a three-run home run in the fifth, his SCAC-leading 10th of the season and the 32nd of his career moving him into sole possession of fourth all-time on the TLU home run list. Randy Huerta would yet again score on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly from Payton Dahl (Round Rock/Cedar Ridge) brought the TLU lead to 21-6 in the sixth before Chance Greene would hit a grand slam for his second home run of the day and Kolby Kinkade would hit a pinch-hit solo home run as TLU hit back-to-back home runs to cap the eight run inning.

TLU would load the bases with one out amidst numerous substitutions with the game beyond out of hand before R.J. Carrillo (Alice/Alice) walked in a run with two outs. Hayden Kesselring (New Braunfels/New Braunfels) would drive in the final run of the game with an infield single bringing the game to its final score of 29-6.

JT Taylor (Houston/Fort Bend Christian) and Nolan McInvale (Poth/Poth) each pitched a shutout inning in relief with McInvale striking out three batters in the seventh.

With the win, Texas Lutheran moves into first place in the SCAC with four conference games remaining. Texas Lutheran leads the SCAC in runs scored (290), RBIs (254), and home runs (28).

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