That can make it a paradise for pitchers and that’s how TC coach Craig McMurtry likes it, but on Wednesday afternoon the conditions were anything but appealing for the men on the mound.
Garrett Bivone’s two-run, go-ahead home run in the fifth inning helped lift TC to a 7-6 win over Hill College in the doubleheader’s first game, but the Rebels exploded for 11 early runs in the finale and held off the Leopards for a 14-10 victory and a windswept split.
Splitting its third consecutive home doubleheader in Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference play, co-leader TC (16-12) moved to 7-3 in the league. The Leopards and Rebels (11-15, 4-6) will complete their series Friday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader in Hillsboro.
“Today’s a day when the wind’s blowing out, which we’re not used to, and it’s a whole different ballgame,” McMurtry said. “There were popups that went out (for home runs). You don’t feel comfortable with any lead.”
After Temple battled for the one-run victory in the seven-inning first game, Hill seized command of nine-inning Game 2 with four runs in the first inning - Kyle Horvath hit a wind-aided grand slam off Zach Butler (1-4) - and seven in the second. TC eventually cut its deficit to 13-10 but still fell short.
“It was ugly,” McMurtry said. “We just pitched badly. We gave up 13 hits, we had 10 walks, we had two hit batters and we made two errors. Hittingwise, we had some opportunities that we didn’t take advantage of.”
Bivone hit two homers in the second game and Steven Smith also homered.
In the opener, TC built leads of 1-0, 5-1 and 7-5. The first two were wiped away and the third almost was, but the Leopards managed to stave off the Rebels.
TC got on the scoreboard first. Leading off the bottom of the second inning, Travis Trial lifted a fly ball that rode the wind and sailed over the fence just to the left of the tall wall in center for a homer and a 1-0 lead.
Hill answered in the third when Kyle Wilson produced a similar result. He got a Daniel Meadows pitch up in the air and benefited from the strong breeze out to left-center for a solo homer and a 1-1 tie.
TC sophomore right fielder Matt Loughrey made a tremendous defensive play for the first out in the fourth.
Horvath hit a long fly ball that seemed to be on its way out for a homer, but Loughrey - who’s spent most of his time in center - jumped at the base of the wall and reached high to snare the ball and take a run away from the Rebels.
The Leopards broke loose against pitcher Jeff Sciba in the fourth. Johnathon Moore singled and Bivone walked before Trial struck out, with both runners advancing a base on the pitch in the dirt.
Loughrey singled to right for a 2-1 lead, and following a groundout Will Sandifer ripped a two-run single over the second baseman’s head to make it 4-1. Mike Lowery then delivered an RBI single to complete the outburst as TC grabbed a 5-1 advantage.
Sophomore left-hander and Texas Tech signee Meadows is difficult to beat with that kind of run support, but Hill found a way to get him out of the game before he could record another out.
Derrick Washington turned an 0-2 count into a leadoff walk in the fifth, then Wilson singled. Meadows’ final pitch didn’t stay in the park, as Joey Torres hit a seemingly harmless fly ball to right that didn’t land until it was over the wall for a three-run homer that sliced TC’s lead to 5-4.
“On a normal day here, that ball down the right-field line is a routine fly ball that you’re coming in for,” McMurtry said. “When I took Daniel out, I told him, ‘You’re not doing a bad job, but we need to do something to change the momentum.’”
Reliable reliever Hunter Scott entered with a save opportunity, but the Rebels kept their uprising going when shortstop Lowery misplayed Horvath’s pop fly in the wind for an error.
After a sacrifice bunt, a single and a walk, Scott had a shot to escape the threat on Nick Paschal’s bases-loaded grounder, but the Leopards couldn’t turn a double play and Horvath scored to tie it.
TC responded in its half of the fifth. Smith led off with a walk, then with one out Bivone blasted the first pitch he saw from Matthias Bable over the right-center wall to put the Leopards a 7-5 lead.
Scott allowed two singles hit a batter as Hill loaded the bases with one out in the sixth, and Hunter Nolen’s fielder’s choice made it 7-6.
But with runners on the corners Scott (4-0) got Kyle Bondy to fly out to center, and in the seventh he closed out the Rebels by striking out all three batters.
“Hunter did a nice job,” McMurtry said. “His confidence is pretty good.”
Temple High School graduate Tristan Gaines and Holland product Paul Spinn are TC’s scheduled starting pitchers for Friday at Hill.
gwille@temple-telegram.com
