Williamsburg, KY – On both sides of the inning, the Patriots stayed hot to pick up their second shutout of the season. In a seven-inning walk-off, Cumberlands ran up the run count 10-0 over the Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders.
At the plate, the Bat Pats rallied three homers to score seven of the runs of the day. The team scored 10 runs on 13 hits.
Over Torres posted the best performance of the line-up, going 3-4 with a dinger to left field and two RBI.
Walter Hernandez was a star on the hill, going the distance for the second time this season. He picked up his third win of the season, allowing only three hits to the opposing bats. He matched a season high 10 K's from the hill.
Hernandez had the helping arm of
Ray Villanueva in the top of the inning to keep the Blue Raiders off the base path. In addition to a pair of batters dropped on strikes, the left fielder launched a missile to catch the runner stretching at second base.
Torres, in the number-two spot in the line-up, hit a two-run blast with no outs to put the Patriots in a winning position for the rest of the game. The third pitch in was swung on and hit hard to left field, clearing the fence.
By the fourth, Hernandez had delivered five more strikeouts. Clean fielding for the Patriots left four runners on base through the stretch. Hernandez would not allow a hit for the remainder of the day after the fourth. He completed his second game of the season, his third appearance with eight or more strikeouts in a game.
On the bottom side,
Brian Garcia hit a one-out single up the middle to get on base.
Rolando Rodriguez punched the fourth pitch over the left field fence as well for his fifth homer of the season and giving the Patriots a 4-0 advantage.
Home runs did not stop there;
Bryan Leef slugged his 40th career blast to left field to plate three more runs for the home team.
Pedro Nazario scored for the second time of the evening, both times on the long ball. Torres noted his third hit of the day to get aboard and round out Leef's runs batted in.
Villanueva hit a double deep to left field to lead off the fifth inning for the Patriots. He advanced up 90 feet on a wild pitch, and scored on
Candido Encarnacion's sacrifice fly. Patriots carried an 8-0 margin until the final inning.
Villanueva again doubled in the inning to begin a rally to close the game.
Yariel Diaz made the most of his pinch hit, singling to outfield grass to put runners on the corners. With the bases loaded,
Mason Sawyer sacrificed his at bat deep into left center to plate the ninth run in the form of Villanueva.
Another free pass to first loaded the bases; the final run scored on a dropped fly ball to left field. The Patriots won the walk-off via the run rule with a 10-run score margin after seven innings played.
The home team moved to 20-3 on the season, the first Mid-South Conference school to reach 20 wins. The contest today was a non-conference match-up, the Patriots square off against the Blue Raiders at their field later this month on March 31.
Pending the incoming rain, the Patriots will retake the field at Doyle Buhl Stadium tomorrow, March 17 against Tennessee Wesleyan. The Bulldogs won the last match-up between these two teams down in Athens, TN, walking off with the 6-5 win. The Patriots look to avenge the loss with home field advantage in a nine-inning affair.
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameDay, Instagram - @UCPatriots, YouTube – Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.
