No. 2 Angelo posts sweep over Hounds

SAN ANGELO, Texas – Eastern New Mexico University’s stay in the Lone Star Conference baseball tournament was relatively short, but the Greyhounds at least made top-seeded and second-ranked Angelo State work a little bit on Saturday.

ENMU got a pair of home runs and three RBIs from freshman left fielder Jonatan Clough and rallied late to make it interesting before dropping a 9-6 decision to the Rams.

The eighth-seeded Hounds (23-28), making just their fifth appearance in the LSC tourney and first since 2018, lost Friday’s opener in the best-of-three series 11-0. In fact, all four first-round series were sweeps by the higher seeds, playing at home.

“Tough loss today to end our season,” ENMU second-year coach Riley Price said. “We fought hard until the very end with the No. 2 team in the nation. I’m really proud of this group (for) believing in the goals we set and for putting the work in to achieve them.”

ASU (44-8) will host a double-elimination tournament involving the four first-round winners from Thursday through Saturday, with the winner of that earning the conference’s automatic bid to South Central Region competition next week.

The Rams have won 20 in a row against ENMU for the second time and lead the all-time series 70-18. The Hounds’ last win over Angelo was a 7-4 decision during their last appearance in the league meet.

ASU led 6-1 after three innings and 8-2 through six. Clough, who hit a solo homer in the fifth, added a two-run shot off right-hander Jackson Haga in the seventh to give him 18 for the season.

Catcher Tyler Boggs, who went 3-for-4, hit a solo shot for the Rams in the bottom half before ENMU loaded the bases with no one out in the eighth and picked up a pair of runs on a sacrifice fly by senior center fielder Braeton Matthews and an RBI groundout by junior right fielder Cooper Hamilton.

Matthews got the start in both games at Angelo after his twin brother, Camden, sustained a leg injury in the Hounds’ final regular-season game on April 30 against Lubbock Christian.

Sophomore right-hander Adrian Rubio (3-7) went four-plus innings for ENMU, allowing seven runs (five earned) on nine hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Sophomore right-hander Julian Lopez worked the final four frames, giving up four hits and two runs.

Clough finished the day 3-for-5 while sophomore second baseman Demetrio Archuleta was 2-for-5. Senior left fielder Jacob Guerrero, who homered and drove in four runs in Friday’s win, finished off a 7-for-8 weekend for the Rams by going 4-for-4 with a double and a sacrifice fly.

ASU showed off its mound depth as six pitchers worked the contest. Junior left-hander Austin Teel (2-1), the second Rams hurler, tossed three innings in relief of starter Braxton Pearson for the win.