LAREDO, Texas – Nathan Alexander pitched a gem on the mound to help Blinn College baseball hold off Laredo Community College 3-2 in the opening game of a doubleheader Sunday afternoon in Laredo.
Laredo did get the better of the Buccaneers in the second game of the doubleheader 4-3 to earn a split. With the split on the day, Blinn’s record moves to 17-12 overall and 8-8 in Region XIV play.
Blinn 3 – Laredo 2
Blinn could only muster three hits but that was enough to earn a 3-2 victory with the pitching performance of Alexander to open the doubleheader the right way.
Alexander pitched all seven innings and gave up two runs on two hits while striking out five in the victory on the mound.
Trent Murphy and Angel De La Fuente each had an RBI for the Buccaneers.
Blinn got on the board first in the fourth inning when Elijah MacNamee started off the inning with a walk and De La Fuente singled him in two batters later to give the Buccaneers a 1-0 lead. De La Fuente later scored on an error for a 2-0 edge. Laredo did tie the game in the bottom of the fourth with two runs.
Blinn went after the lead for good by loading the bases with walks by De La Fuente and MacNamee and a single by Sam McElreath. With the bases loaded, Murphy drew a walk to push across a run that proved to be the game-winner.
Laredo 4 – Blinn 3
Blinn hit the ball much better in the second game with 10 hits but the Buccaneers also left 10 on base in a 4-3 loss to Laredo in the second game of the doubleheader.
MacNamee had a solid game at the plate by going 4 for 5 with three singles and a double while knocking in a run. Murphy had a pair of singles and Austen Swift brought in a run with a single in the loss.
Blinn jumped on the board in the first inning when Jay Anderson got it started with a walk and then MacNamee singled him in two batters later for a 1-0 lead. Swift later added an RBI single to left to give the Buccaneers a two-run advantage. Laredo did come back to take a 3-2 lead with a single run in the second and two runs in the fifth.
Walker Winders did deliver a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning that helped the Buccaneers tie the game up at 3-3. Unfortunately, that would be the final time that Blinn would score and Laredo added the game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth to pull out the victory.
Blinn will next play at Navarro College on Tuesday, March 29 at 3 p.m.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 32 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.
