It took a few innings for Little Rock to get going Tuesday, but once the offense came to life, it quickly sprinted past Oral Roberts for an 11-1 run-rule victory in the first of two midweek contests at Gary Hogan Field.
The offense wasn't the only thing clicking for the Trojans (11-9), as seven Little Rock pitchers combined to allow just three hits and one run, helping the team secure its third consecutive win.
"Great all-around effort tonight. The pitchers were outstanding; they really commanded the strike zone, and the offense opened things up," head coach
Chris Curry said. "We were able to get some guys on the mound who hadn't been out there in a long time—guys like
Malcolm Brown and
Jack Cline, who have thrown some of the biggest innings in Little Rock baseball history. That was really good to see."
The two teams will meet again Wednesday at 3 p.m., with
Nic Bronzini getting the nod for the Trojans, who hit the road this weekend to open Ohio Valley Conference play against Tennessee Tech.
"Oral Roberts is a very good program, one I have a lot of respect for," Curry said. "It was good to see us continue to play the way we did last weekend because our Tuesdays have not gone well thus far. It's good to see us building some momentum."
Gage Haley tossed two innings in the start, allowing the lone run of the day on a solo home run in the second inning. Blake Van Cleeve and
Brayden Walls combined to cover the next two frames, with Walls recording a bases-loaded strikeout to shut down an ORU threat in the fourth.
Isaac Evaniew worked 1.1 innings to earn the win, Cline threw 1.2 perfect innings, and Brown handled the final frame to pick up the save. Brown entered the game with the Trojans leading just 4-1 before the offense erupted for seven runs in the eighth.
Eight different Trojans combined for 12 hits, led by
Angel Cano, who homered as part of a game-high three-hit performance. His fifth home run of the season tied the game at 1-1 and sparked a four-run fifth inning for Little Rock.
Easton Roe collected two hits and drove in two runs, while
Ty Rhoades doubled and added two RBIs.
Jack Bilski also recorded a pair of hits, and
Michael O'Brien singled in the final two runs of the contest.
Â
Â
