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Hounds split with Javelinas

Trevor Davis had already thrown more than 100 pitches through eight innings, but he figured he had enough left to finish the job.

Davis wiggled out of a first-and-third, none-out jam in the top of the ninth and pitched Eastern New Mexico University past Texas A&M-Kingsville 4-3 in the first game of a Lone Star Conference South Division-opening doubleheader on Friday at Greyhound Field.

The Javelinas came back to take the second game 4-3. The teams split again on Saturday, with Kingsville rolling to a 10-3 victory before the Hounds held on for a 6-5 win in the nightcap.

ENMU coach Phil Clabaugh figured Davis (7-3) was the Hounds’ best option trying to finish out Friday’s tight opener.

“He’s our best,” Clabaugh said. “I know his pitch count was up there, but I felt like he still had a good fastball.

“Before the ninth, I asked him how he was and he said, ‘I think I’ve got three outs left in me.’”

Kingsville (23-12, 2-2 South) quickly put runners at the corners, though, when shortstop Justin Bills doubled and moved to third on a bunt single by center fielder Dustin Brooks. But Brooks was caught in a rundown on Davis’ third-to-first pickoff move, and first baseman Mark Wallace eventually gunned down Bills trying to score.

A walk to Jon Dean and a double steal put runners at second and third with one out, but Davis struck out Jeff Rosser before Wallace fielded Steve Echevarria’s bad-hop grounder near the line and beat him to the bag.

“I was drained,” said Davis, who threw 126 pitches and struck out eight while surviving 13 Kingsville hits. “When I got back to the dugout, I thought I was going to pass out.”

ENMU (15-18, 2-2) trailed 3-1 before Bryan Moore led off the sixth with a triple and scored when third baseman Andrew Sweet misplayed the relay. Wallace’s one-out double chased Kingsville starter Chris White in the seventh, and Micah Bernhardt and Josh Kuchta hit RBI singles off reliever Kyle A. Thompson (3-2).

In the seven-inning nightcap, Kingsville built a 6-0 lead through 5 1/2 innings before the Hounds rallied back, scoring three in the sixth and one in the seventh. Right-hander Raul Trujillo (4-1) threw 133 pitches in a complete-game effort, fanning out 13 batters against a team which had been striking out less than three times a game.

“He’s been battling some back problems,” Kingsville coach Russell Stockton said of Trujillo. “He had surgery before Christmas and it’s still not totally healed. It’s been a long process to get him back.”

Wallace, who pitched two innings in relief of starter David Swinconos (2-2) in the nightcap, went 3-for-3 with two RBIs in the second game and finished the day 5-for-7.

“I was really pleased with how our kids battled,” Clabaugh said. “They didn’t hit David that hard. In hindsight, I probably didn’t get Wallace in there soon enough.”

Kingsville 10-5, ENMU 3-6 (Saturday) — Second baseman Jeff Rosser homered and went 4-for-5 with three RBIs as the Javelinas won the opener. Kingsville chased starter Brett Scherer (2-4) with a six-run fourth, snapping a 1-1 tie.

In the seven-inning nightcap, the Hounds scored single runs in each of their six turns at-bat and held on as Davis relieved starter Kelly Crain (4-6) and earned his third save of the season. He got a game-ending 6-4-3 double play when Javs baserunner Adam Rondou was called for interference at second base on a ground ball by Dustin Brooks.

ENMU gained a split despite being outhit by Kingsville in all four games.

Friday

First game

ENMU 4, Texas A&M-Kingsville 3

TAM-K 002 001 000 — 3 13 1

ENMU 010 001 20x — 4 9 2

Chris White, Kyle A. Thompson (7) and Steve Yaden; Trevor Davis and Brian Green. W — Davis (7-3). L — K.A. Thompson (3-2). DP — Texas A&M-Kingsville 1, Eastern New Mexico 2. LOB — Texas A&M-Kingsville 9, Eastern New Mexico 7. 2B — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Jon Dean, Jeff Rosser, Yaden, Justin Hills. Eastern New Mexico: Mark Wallace. 3B — Eastern New Mexico: Bryan Moore. T — 2:51. A — 70.

Second game

Texas A&M-Kingsville 6, ENMU 4

TAM-K 200 112 0 — 6 11 0

ENMU 000 003 1 — 4 8 1

Raul Trevino and Yaden; David Swinconos, Wallace (6) and Tyler Brown. W — Trevino (4-1). L — Swinconos (2-2). DP — Eastern New Mexico 1. LOB — Texas A&M-Kingsville 6, Eastern New Mexico 8. 2B — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Rosser. Eastern New Mexico: Brett Scherer. T — 2:23. A — 60.

Saturday

First game

Texas A&M-Kingsville 10, ENMU 3

TAM-K 100 602 100 —10 14 1

ENMU 100 010 100 — 3 11 6

Josh Livingston and Yaden, Spike Fogle (5); Scherer, Kellen Smith (4) and Tyler Brown. W — Livingston (4-1). L — Scherer (2-4). DP — Texas A&M-Kingsville 12, Eastern New Mexico 9. 2B — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Steve Echevarria, Taylor Richards, Andrew Sweet, Fogle 2. Eastern New Mexico: Bryan Moore. HR — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Rosser (2). T — 2:54. A — 55.

Second game

ENMU 6, Texas A&M-Kingsville 5

TAM-K 010 201 1 — 5 13 2

ENMU 111 111 x — 6 8 3

Jeff Peters, K.A. Thompson (5) and Yaden; Kelly Crain, Davis (7) and Green. W — Crain (4-6). L — Peters (5-2). DP — Texas A&M-Kingsville 1, Eastern New Mexico 2. LOB — Texas A&M-Kingsville 10, Eastern New Mexico 10. 2B — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Fogle, Sweet. Eastern New Mexico: Gilbert Alvarado. 3B — Texas A&M-Kingsville: Dean. T — 2:40. A — 75.