CONWAY, Ark. — Nick Perez shined for Little Rock baseball as it got a huge 6-5 win in a thrilling extra-inning game against Central Arkansas on Tuesday evening in Conway. The win marked the first victory at Bear Stadium since 2011.
Perez did it all for the Trojans (2-2) as he went 3-for-4 at the plate with two RBIs from a first-inning home run. Not only was his bat lethal, but he got the job done on the mound as well for Little Rock by picking up the win. He pitched in the big time moments through extra innings and ended the game with three strikeouts, zero earned runs and zero hits against five batters.
"We have a new dimension this year, a sort of two-headed monster in Perez," head Coach Chris Curry said. "It's why we put him in the designated hitter spot because we are hoping to get the game to him and (Justin) Garcia late."
The hitting was led by multiple Trojans as Troy Alexander once again was a force at the plate. He finished 2-for-4 on the evening with one RBI and a run. Emshoff had a monster night at the plate going 3-for-5 with two runs. Chase Coker went 1-for-2 at the plate with an RBI and a run while also tallying a triple.
Justin Garcia proved himself a dominant leader on the mound for the Trojans coming on in relief in the seventh inning with the score tied and pitching through the 10th. In his 3.1 innings pitched, he totaled six strikeouts, two hits and no earned runs to keep his season ERA at zero.
"Garcia wins with heart," Curry praised. "He doesn't throw 90 or may not even be a draft pick. He just loves the program and is completely unselfish."
"It's not a one-man deal," Garcia said. "Our team is really meshing right now. We have been putting in a lot of hard work and it's paying off."
The game broke open early as the Trojans jumped to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first as Matt Merino hit a two-out single followed by a double from Alexander. Perez then stepped up to the plate and hit an 0-2 bomb over the left-center wall.
Aaron Funk, in his first collegiate start, gave up a hit to the first batter he faced but then picked the runner off at first for the first out. He then struck out the next two batters to close the inning.
In the second, Emshoff kept that momentum going with a leadoff single to right followed by a Coker triple to score Emshoff. Marcus Ragan laid down a sac bunt for Coker to bring him in and put the score at 5-0.
The big lead didn't last long as the Bears (1-3) retaliated by scoring a run and loading the bases in the bottom of the second against Funk, prompting Curry to bring in right-hander Donavin Buck. Buck, with two outs and on his first batter, gave up a bases clearing double to bring the score within one for Central Arkansas. The Bears tacked on another run in the third to tie the score.
With eyes around the stadium on the skies wondering if there was going to be a delay or cancellation due to forecasted rain and thunderstorms, the game found its way into the 11th inning. Emshoff capped off his big night with a leadoff single into right field to give the Trojans the runner they needed. Freshman Eldrige Figueroa came to the plate and laid down a perfect sac bunt to advance Emshoff into scoring position. After Christian Reyes grounded out to the shortstop to give Little Rock two outs, Marcus Ragan stepped into the box. On an 0-1 count, Ragan drilled a single into right field to bring Emshoff around for the go-ahead run.
Perez came to the mound with confidence and sharply struck out the first two batters with the combination of his power fastball and knee-breaking offspeed. For the final out of the game, he got the batter to ground out to first baseman Riley Pittman to give the Trojans their first victory in Conway in seven years.
"I wanted this team to do things that haven't done here in a long time," Curry said. "It's a very hard place to win because they play so hard, so it's nice to do something against our rivals that we haven't done in almost seven years."
Little Rock will now come to Gary Hogan Field for its first home series against Fort Wayne this weekend. Game one will be on Friday at 3 p.m. followed by a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. The four-game series will come to a close on Sunday at 1 p.m.
