Baseball Keeps Postseason Hopes Alive with Series Win at Schreiner

KERRVILLE, Texas - The Austin College baseball team used a powerful offensive start to secure an 11-4 victory over Schreiner University on Saturday afternoon. The 'Roos set the tone early, plating four runs in the opening inning to establish a lead they would never relinquish.

Desmond Squalls opened the scoring for Austin College with a sacrifice fly that brought Caleb Staggs home, and Carlos Michinaux followed with an RBI single. Keaton Bradshaw added a run-scoring double, and Cayd Miller capped the four-run first inning by plating one more with a base knock of his own.

Bradshaw led the Austin College attack with four hits in five at-bats, including two doubles, two runs scored, and one run batted in. Miller also provided a significant spark for the 'Roos, finishing with two hits and a team-high three runs batted in. Jaxyn Rogers contributed two hits, including a pair of doubles, and one run batted in, while Alex Rodriguez tallied two hits, one run, and one run batted in.

Austin College extended its early lead to 5-0 in the second inning when Squalls drove in Staggs with a single. Schreiner responded with two runs in the bottom half of the inning, featuring a run-scoring groundout by Nolan Harris and a run scored on a wild pitch.

The 'Roos broke the game open in the third inning, scoring four more times. The rally was highlighted by a two-run single from Miller and a sacrifice fly by Kaden Stegent, pushing the advantage to 9-2. The teams traded runs in the fourth inning, with Rogers hitting a sacrifice fly for Austin College and Schreiner scoring on another wild pitch. Rodriguez added a run-scoring single in the sixth inning to cap the scoring for the 'Roos, while Schreiner added a final run in the ninth inning on a single by Kale Lackey.

Jayden Ayala-Hinojosa earned the win for Austin College, throwing seven innings and allowing three runs on six hits while striking out one and walking five. Colten Millsap worked the final two innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out two.

Schreiner was led offensively by Shawn Rivera, Daniel Rodriguez, Lackey, and JD Blair, who each recorded two hits in the loss. Lackey and Harris provided the runs batted in for Schreiner. Wyatt Henry took the loss, allowing five runs on six hits in one and one-third innings.

With the win, Austin College moves to 16-17 overall and 13-12 in conference play, keeping the 'Roos firmly in the hunt for one of the final spots in this year's six-team Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament. Austin College is off until April 21, when they host Dallas Christian for Senior Night, before wrapping up the regular season and trying to clinch a spot in the postsesaon with a road series at Hendrix later that week.