AUSTIN, Texas – During a sunny day in Austin, Eastern New Mexico Baseball picked up a split of the doubleheader against St. Edward's on Saturday afternoon at Lucian-Hamilton Field. In game one, ENMU scored three runs in the 5^th inning and held off the Hilltoppers in a 7-6 victory. During the second game, St. Edward's dominated on the mound during a 5-0 win. Eastern now stand at 7-8 on the season, while having the same conference record. The Hilltoppers moved to 5-8 overall, with a 5-6 LSC standing.

GAME ONE: ENMU 7, SEU 6

Both teams started scoring in the early inning, with ENMU tacking on four runs in the opening frame. Demetrio Archuleta doubled, then Willie Ponce followed with a single to score the opening run. Cooper Hamilton doubled with two outs, sending Ponce to the plate, then Beau Preston scored themselves and Hamilton with a home run to left field (4-0 ENMU). However, the Hilltoppers picked up five runs in the 2^nd frame, then added a run in the 3^rd inning to take a 6-4 lead.
 
The Greyhounds climbed back into the game in the 5^th inning. Tucker Gideon walked, Archuleta singled, and Ponce was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. Daniel Pruitt followed with a hit by pitch to score a run, leaving the bases loaded (SEU 6-5). Hamilton pulled a single through the right side to plate two runs to give ENMU a 7-6 advantage.
 
After spending the first four innings playing left field, Luciano Terilli was called to take the rubber for the Hounds to secure a victory. Terilli stranded a runner with back-to-back strikeouts in the 5^th and worked a 1-2-3 frame in the 6^th. After a 4-6-3 double play got the Greyhounds one out away, St. Edward's single to get the tying run aboard. A hit by pitch and a pass ball put the tying run at 3^rd and the winning run at second. However, a fly by to center field ended the game to secure a win for the Greyhounds, 7-6.

NOTABLE STATS

• ENMU edged out the Hilltoppers for hits, 10-8, with the Greyhounds having three extra base hits.
• Hamilton led Eastern with three hits and three RBIs, while Preston and Archuleta had multiple base hits.
• Jadon Rendon picked up the win (W, 1-0), tossing one shutout relief inning. Terilli earned a 2.2 IP save (SV, 1), allowing one hit and one walk with three K's. Adrian Rubio started the game in the no-decision, with two innings pitched and five runs allowed. Anthony Gonzalez faced two batters, while Griffin Almond tossed one inning.
• Brennan Berdon took the loss (L, 1-2), allowing all seven runs in 4.0+ innings. Austin Essex allowed no run in three innings, giving up a pair of hits.

GAME TWO: SEU 5, ENMU 0

After back-to-back 1-2-3 innings, St. Edward's dumped four runs on the board from three hits in the second inning. A bases loaded walk produced the first run, then a doubled cleared the bases to make the score 4-0. ENMU were held hitless over the next two innings but got runners on base in the 5^th frame.
 
A single from Terilli and a hit by pitch put two base runners on to start the inning, then Archuleta singled to left field to load the bases with two outs. However, a strikeout left three runners stranded for ENMU on the bases. An RBI single added an insurance run for St. Edward's in the 6^th inning, as the Hilltoppers held on to a 5-0 victory over Eastern.

NOTABLE STATS

• St. Edward's out paced the Greyhounds for hits, 7-3, with three singles, two hit by pitches, and a walk being the only Greyhound base runners.
• Archuleta, Pruitt, and Terilli recorded the base hits for the Greyhounds.
• Ruger Bravo is tagged with the loss (L, 1-1), giving up four runs from three hits and a walk in 1.1 innings. Josaiah Estrella carried the load with four innings and one run allowed, with three K's. Zach Raichel retired both batters they faced, with two flyouts.
• Jakub Rayfield earned the victory for the Hilltoppers, tossing a complete game with seven strikeouts and three hits allowed in the shutout.

FROM THE SOURCE

"Not a great day for our starters on the mound," said Head ENMU Baseball Coach Riley Price. "In game one, we were able to manufacture enough runs throughout to get the win. Luciano Terilli came in from left field to pitch late and he shut down their offense," said Price. "Really proud of how he handled a stressful situation and allowed us to walk away with the win,".

"Game two was another rough start on the mound, but our bullpen did a good enough job to give us a chance to win. Offensively, we were kept off balance and could not manage to string anything together," said Price. "We had a few big opportunities to score but lacked the big hit to get us going. We didn't have enough quality at bats on the day and we must be more productive going into game four. Really need to walk away with a series win tomorrow," said Price.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• During the first game of the doubleheader, Rendon picked up their first career win, while Terilli earned the first save for the Greyhounds, going a career long 2.2 IP with three strikeouts (season best).
• Hamilton finished 3-4 in game one, with a season best three hits and three RBIs. Preston launched their first home run of the season.
• ENMU goes for the series win tomorrow against the Hilltoppers, with the finale scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 25, from Lucian-Hamilton Field.