03/31/04

Provided by the Texarkana Gazette

Staff photo by Matt Hempel Texarkana College's Andrew Russell fields a grounder to second during the sixth inning in the first game of the Bulldogs' doubleheader against Navarro Wednesday at Spring Lake Park. The Bulldogs lost the opener, 5-3.

By JOHNNY GREEN
Sports Director

 

Texarkana College had just rallied for four eighth-inning runs and a split of its doubleheader with Navarro College Tuesday at George Dobson Field, but you couldn't tell it by the forlorn look on the face of Bulldogs coach James Mansinger.

"I'm just tired of the way we make everything so hard," said Mansinger after the 13-10 victory following a 5-3 loss left the Bulldogs spinning their wheels at 5-5 in conference play. "We can't keep doing this much longer. We need to sweep at Bossier Parish Saturday and Paris next Wednesday."

The Bulldogs, 16-15 overall, were fortunate not to be swept by Navarro (20-12, 7-5) Wednesday. The visiting Bulldogs, who overcame a 3-1 deficit with a four-run fifth inning in the opener, put eight runs on the board in the sixth inning of the nightcap, overcome an 8-1 deficit. NC added another in the seventh to take a 10-8 lead.

But after Chris Hollensworth's RBI single made it a one-run game in the bottom of the seventh, Texarkana put together four straight one-out hits and another with two away to score the four runs that finally put the visitors away.

Pinch-hitter Adam Roos started the rally with a single off reliever Lance Nunnery, who was pitching his first inning. After a wild pitch, Rusty Russell plated Roos with a line-shot single past the third baseman and took second on the throw to the plate.

With the score tied, Jermaine Mitchell singled off the second baseman's glove to score Roose and Daniel Berg followed with a double down the left-field line, Mitchell scooting home. Berg later scored on Anthony Reinke's two-out single to right.

Keith Jenkins relieved starter Stoney Stone in the sixth inning and picked up the win with the help of Elliott Love, who retired all three batters he faced in the ninth. Stone was breezing until the sixth when Navarro sent 13 batters to the plate, scoring the eight runs on six hits and two critical errors.

"I thought Stoney threw the ball well," Mansinger said. "Our defense let him down or he could have got out of the inning without many runs scoring."

The Bulldogs opened an 8-1 lead by scoring four runs in each of the first and second innings. Danny Williams had a two-run single in the first and Hollensworth drove in two more with a double to the wall in center. Russell followed a walk to Steven Trout and a double by Roos with a two-run double in the second, then scored on Mitchell's single. Williams drove in the final run with a groundout.

Mitchell had three of TC's 14 hits and David Jeans, Russell and Hollinsworth two each. Russell, Williams and Hollensworth drove in three runs each.

It was a different story in the first game. TC managed just four hits-all in the first inning-against right-hander Ryan Tacker, who retired the final 17 batters he faced.

"He (Tacker) got it going after that first inning," Mansinger said. "Our hitters had a good approach in the first, then they got away from it. That's one thing that's starting to bother me-our guys don't stay hooked up for two whole games."

Left-hander David Welch was unable to return to the mound in the second inning after suffering a back injury later determined to be a slipped disk. He is not expected to miss a start.

Joel Thorney pitched well in relief until Navarro put together four straight one-out hits in the fifth inning to score four runs. Jon Bertschanger had a two-run double and Johnny Ormand followed with an RBI double for the winners.

Down 1-0, TC took the lead in the bottom of the first on singles by Jeans and Russell, a wild pitch, Mitchell's run-scoring double and a two-out triple by Roos that hit fair, then skipped into foul territory and off the tarp on the left side.

That was the final hit allowed by Tacker, who struck out eight and did not walk a batter. Thorney gave up seven hits, struck out four and walked none.

FIRST GAME

Navarro 100 040 0 - 5 9 1
Texarkana 300 000 0 - 3 4 2
Ryne Tacker and Ty Wallace. David Welch, Joel Thorney (2) and Adam Dalby. WP-Tacker. LP-Thorney.

SECOND GAME
Navarro 010 008 100 - 10 14 2
Texarkana 440 000 14x - 13 14 4
Joseph Krebs, Brett Zamzow (2), Lance Nunnery (8), Jake McCarter (8) and Ty Wallace. Stoney Stone, Keith Jenkins (6), Elliott Love (9) and Adam Dalby. WP-Jenkins. LP-Nunnery