#MustangsWin! Walker's Walkoff Helps Mustangs Split With Spartans

Erik Holth, CBC Sports Information Director

            North Little Rock, Ark. – Gabe Walker's RBI double in the bottom of the tenth inning helped Central Baptist College baseball split with American Midwest Conference foe Missouri Baptist University today at Burns Park. CBC (20-20, 5-9 AMC) won game two 8-7 on Walker's hit after dropping game one 9-1 to the Spartans (17-16, 10-4 AMC).

            Walker's hit was the third walkoff hit of the season and brought an end to the first extra inning game of the season for CBC. Walker had also homered earlier in the game for the first time in his career, as CBC was able to pound out 13 hits in the win, including six for extra bases.

GAME ONE – MBU 9, CBC 1 (SEVEN INNINGS)

            An Austin Teal double put CBC ahead 1-0 in the second inning in game one, but that would wind up being the only hit of the game for the Mustangs, as they were shut down by MBU starter Matthew Hess. The Spartans took a 2-1 lead in the fourth, added six in the fifth and one in the seventh to bring an end to the scoring. Andrew Killough took the loss, throwing five inning and allowing eight runs (six earned) on 11 hits with two walks and four Ks. Ben Slate threw a perfect sixth with a pair of strikeouts and Justin Raines finished the game, allowing two hits and a run.

GAME TWO – CBC 8, MBU 7 (10 INNINGS)

            The second game started in completely different fashion from the first, with the Spartans scoring five times in the second inning to lead 5-0. Walker's home run, a solo shot, cut the deficit to 5-1 in the fifth before the Spartans stretched the lead back to five in the sixth. The offense broke out in the eighth inning, putting up five runs to tie the game at six apiece. An RBI double by Kyle Bass started the scoring, followed by an RBI single by Steven Stewart two batters later and a game-tying, three-run home run from Logan Easterling, his 14^th, to make it 6-6. MBU would score a run on a balk in the ninth to lead 7-6 before a home run from Teal, his fifth, would tie the game at seven and force extra innings. In the extra frame, Jackson Lindsey allowed a double with one out, but retired the next two batters on flyouts to send the game to the bottom half tied. Graham Dykes would lead off the inning with a walk and be lifted for pinch runner Dominick McBride. Danilo Taborda was called on to pinch hit, but could not cash in. Walker then came up, and, after a wild pitch that advanced McBride to second, doubled him home to send the Mustangs home happy. Lindsey was the winner, allowing just one hit in 1.2 innings. Garon Johnson started and did not factor in the decision, allowing five runs on seven hits with a pair of Ks and a pair of walks. Caleb Sollars threw four relief innings and allowed one run on one hit with two walks and a pair of strikeouts and Rhett Blackburn threw .1 innings, allowing a hit and an unearned run with a strikeout.

GAME NOTES

• The Mustangs are now 11-13 all-time against the Spartans
• Easterling's home run put him into a tie for third all-time in a single season
• Jay French had three hits in game two giving him 208 for his career, two behind Josh Buczek for second all-time
• Walker's winner was the third walkoff hit for the Mustangs this season, following a walkoff home run by Stewart on March 5 against Culver-Stockton and a Ruben Hernandez walkoff double on March 8 against Iowa Wesleyan
• This was the first extra inning game since May 1, 2021 against Columbia at Conway Christian School

UP NEXT

            The Mustangs and Spartans will wrap up their series tomorrow afternoon at Victory Field on the Conway Christian School campus. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m., but with overnight rain, stay tuned to @gocbcmustangs on social media for updates on the game's status.