TROY, Ala. | Alabama State battled back from an early deficit to take the lead, only to watch Troy win it 8-7 in the bottom of the ninth on a throwing error in non-conference action at Riddle-Pace Field Wednesday night.
Troy (17-16) took an early 3-0 lead on Alabama State using an RBI double from Sadler Goodwin and a two-run home run by Logan Cerney in the first inning, before the Hornets rallied in the top half of the second to pull within a run.
Santiago Garcia led off the inning with a double, and that was followed by a walk to
Hunter May to set the stage for
Angel Jimenez. The freshman drove the ball to right field off the wall to score both runs, before he was tagged out trying to stretch the play into a double but got the Hornets to within a run at 3-2.
It stayed that way until the sixth when Alabama State (16-15) added a run to tie the game up at 3-all on an infield single by Garcia to score
Yamil Pagan from third.
The two teams combined for eight runs in the seventh inning, sending a combined 16 hitters to the plate. Alabama State started the scoring with a two-run double by
Cristopher DeGuzman to take a 5-3 lead, before
Eriq White recorded a two-run double off the wall to give Alabama State a 7-3 lead. Troy answered, however, in the bottom half of the seventh inning with four runs of their own to tie the game at 7-all.
The game stayed that way until the bottom of the ninth when the Trojans got the first two hitters aboard on a walk and single to left. Cerney came to the plate and laid down a sacrifice bunt to the mound, and the throw went wide to give Troy the walk-off win.
Terrell McCall (0-1) suffered the loss in relief, as he was one of four pitchers used by the Hornets, going 2.0 innings and allowing one run (unearned) on two hits with a strikeout.
Nate Gerard came in to face the last batter of the game, while
Trevor Jurjevich faced four batters in the seventh and gave up four runs on three hits.
Darrius Wright earned the start for the Hornets and did not factor in the decision, leaving with a four-run lead. He went 6.0 innings and allowed three runs on four hits, with four strikeouts. Offensively, Garcia led the attack as he finished the night 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI; while Jimenez and DeGuzman each finished with a pair of hits each for Alabama State as they had 11 hits as a team.
Meanwhile, for Troy, Lance Johnson (2-1) got the win in relief working 2.0 innings and allowing a pair of hits with two strikeouts. He was the fourth pitcher of the night used by the Trojans in relief of starter Max Newton who went 6.0 innings and allowed three runs off of six hits. Offensively, Goodwin led Troy at the plate with three hits.
Alabama State returns to action Friday night against Alcorn State at 6 pm in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) action at the Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex, kicking off a four-game series. The game can be heard on the Hornet Sports Network, beginning with pregame at 5:45 pm.
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