BRENHAM, Texas – Blinn College baseball played good enough to win at times April 9 against Alvin Community College but it was Alvin coming out on top of both games with the help of timely home runs and win by the score of 7-5 and 7-4 at Leroy Dreyer Field in Brenham.
The losses were costly for Blinn’s conference record as it fell to 9-17 and the Buccaneers fall below .500 on the overall record at 18-19.
Blinn hit the ball well in spurts in the opening game as Stephen Stuart hit a pair of doubles and Cullen Jozwiak added two singles but a two run home run for Alvin in the fifth was enough to come away with the 7-5 victory.
Stuart also added an RBI in the loss while Christian Thames, Robbie Rojas and Jager Toffan each knocked in a run.
Blinn did come out strong in the opening inning when Jozwiak singled to begin and Stuart followed with a double. Rojas knocked in the first run of the game with a single to center and then Stuart was able to score later in the inning for a 2-0 lead. The lead didn’t last long as Alvin scored three in the second inning for a 3-2 lead.
Thames made Alvin pay in the third inning for hitting Toffan with a pitch as Thames followed with an RBI double to knot the game up at 3-3. Alvin used the long ball in the top of the fourth for a 5-3 lead.
Blinn showed great resiliency in the bottom half of the fourth as Patrick King got it started when he was hit by a pitch and Stuart doubled in a run to get within 5-4. Toffan tied the game with a hard-hit ground ball to the right side to level the score at 5-5.
The long ball showed up when Alvin needed it as another two-run homer helped to clinch the game for Alvin for a 7-5 final.
Blinn put up a dramatic comeback in the ninth inning of the second game with two runs to tie the game at 4-4 but it was Alvin coming up with the hits to pull out a 7-4 extra-inning victory to sweep the pair. Thames had a solid game at the plate, going 4-for-4, with all four hits being singles. Clayton Auippa and Toffan each had an RBI in the loss.
Blinn couldn’t have asked for a better start from Nathan Alexander on the mound as he went over seven innings while striking out nine and only allowed one earned run in the no-decision.
Blinn again had the offense early on as Stuart singled with one out and then was brought around to score on a double by Toffan for a 1-0 lead. Alvin went ahead in the fourth inning with a pair of runs and then added to that advantage with another pair of runs in the seventh for a 4-1 edge.
Toffan scored in the eighth inning to get Blinn within two runs after getting hit by a pitch and then scoring on a balk to make the score 4-2. The real drama came in the ninth when Hunter Lehman singled to begin the inning and then Thames followed with his fourth single. Pinch-runner Conner Smith scored on a wild pitch to get within a run and Auippa followed with a bloop single to right to tie the game at 4-4.
Unfortunately, Blinn was unable to push across another run in the ninth and Alvin hit two home runs in the 10th to close out the 7-4 victory to complete the sweep.
Blinn will be at home April 16 for a double-header against Wharton County Junior College that begins at 3 p.m.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 30 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit: www.buccaneersports.com.
