NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A four-run eighth inning by Central Arkansas proved costly as Little Rock dropped a 6-4 decision to the Bears Tuesday evening at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock. The loss drops the Trojans to 26-24 on the season and is the fourth-straight defeat for Little Rock.
The four runs came on eight hits for the Trojans, led by a 3-for-4 effort from
Marcus Ragan.
Chase Coker went 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI, making the top two of the Little Rock batting order 5-for-9 on the evening.
The rest of the Trojan lineup combined for just three hits, however, coming off the bats of
Ryan Benavidez,
James Gann and
Nick Perez. Perez added an RBI with Benavidez, Perez,
Troy Alexander and
Christian Reyes providing the Trojans' four runs.
Little Rock struck first in the bottom of the third when Coker beat out a hit deep to the UCA second baseman on the edge of the infield, bringing Ragan home and giving Little Rock the early 1-0 lead.
That lead stood until the top of the fifth when a UCA sac fly, followed by an RBI double, gave the Bears the 2-1 lead. Coker then struck again in the bottom half of the inning, reaching on a fielding error by the UCA second baseman which allowed
Troy Alexander to spring home from third, knotting the game at 2-2.
The Trojans then reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the sixth. After Benavidez beat out a single to first base, Perez ripped a triple to the corner in right center, bringing Benavidez home and giving Little Rock the 3-2 lead. Then with Alexander batting, a wild pitch from UCA starter Gavin Stone gave Perez the opportunity he needed, beating the throw home and putting Little Rock on top 4-2.
But Central Arkansas would get their payback on Perez in the top of the eight when he took the mound in relief. The Bears plated four runs in the inning, including back-to-back home runs, giving them the lead for good and handing Perez the loss, his second of the year.
Little Rock's rally attempt never was able to gain any traction as the Bear bullpen struck out four of the final six Trojan batters, preserving the win to give the two rivals the split of the season series.
Nine different pitchers saw action for Little Rock, beginning with starter
Hayden Arnold who kept UCA hitless with three strikeouts in his two innings of work.
Ethan Daily,
Mason Leeming,
McKinley Moore,
Cody Daylor,
Donavin Buck and
Justin Garcia combined to hold Central Arkansas to just three hits and no runs with seven strikeouts over 5.1 innings.
Little Rock now sets its sights on its final Sun Belt Conference series of the season, which brings rival Arkansas State to
Gary Hogan Field in a series which has a number of tournament implications on the line. The three-game set begins Thursday with a 6 p.m. first pitch, followed by Friday's 6 p.m. game time leading up to the regular season finale Saturday at 1 p.m.
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