By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The offense was back out in full force and the bullpen was masterful for the Tennessee Tech baseball team on Sunday afternoon, leading the Golden Eagles to a 9-7 victory at Little Rock to complete the Ohio Valley Conference series sweep at Gary Hogan Field.
The Cookeville crew (18-7, 3-0) upped the voltage in its swings on the day with four of the team's eight hits leaving the ballpark. The timing of those hacks made all the difference in a back-and-forth battle with a desperate Trojan squad (9-15, 0-3) looking to avoid a 0-3 start to league play.
After falling to the Golden Eagles on both Friday and Saturday, Little Rock was quick to deliver to the first blow on Sunday, striking for three runs in the opening frame. Patience worked early for the Trojans, drawing a pair of walks to set up a two-run double. The home squad followed it with an RBI base hit before Tech settled and closed the inning without further damage.
The purple and gold responded immediately in the top of the second, with designated hitter Jorsixt Jimenez directing the charge with a lead-off home run to center field. Third baseman Preston Steele and center fielder Nicho Jordan continued to push the issue by drawing back-to-back free passes.
First baseman Carter Vrabel took his turn at the dish and delivered a massive blow to Little Rock's momentum, working a 2-2 count. On the next pitch, the senior crushed a three-run blast to left field, circling the bags for the third time on the year while pushing Tech in front, 4-3.
Jimenez returned to the plate in the third and increased the visitor's lead to 5-3, belting a hanging breaking ball to center field for his second round-tripper of the game and fourth of the season.
The Trojans refused to go down without a fight, taking their own turn in response in the bottom of the third. Little Rock used an RBI single and two-run double to recapture the lead and force Tech to turn to the bullpen.
Head coach Matt Bragga put the ball in the hands of right-hander Reece McDuffie with one out. After surrendering a base knock on his first pitch, he settled in to induce a fly out and ground out to escape the frame without further damage.
Little Rock did manage to score once off the Golden Eagle reliever, picking up a solo dinger to left-center field in the bottom of the fourth to increase its lead to 7-5. Tech's rally caps took an inning to work, but the result was worth the wait.
In the top of the sixth, Jimenez continued his spectacular game by leading things off with a double to left field. Steele moved him over to third with a ground out before Jordan reached first thanks to another walk.
Picking up a strikeout for their second out of the frame, the Trojans looked like they might escape the inning unscathed. Instead, a passed ball while second baseman Eddie Garza was battling at the plate allowed Jimenez to score and cut the deficit to one. Garza followed with a clutch base knock to left field, plating Jordan to square the contest once more at 7-7.
McDuffie was spectacular on the mound in the fifth, sixth, and seventh frames, scattering two hits while keeping the purple and gold alive. He knocked out the first out of the eighth as well before hitting the his final batter of the day, prompting Bragga to go back to the pen.
This time, sophomore Jack Brafa answered the call, needing a batter to get comfortable following a six-pitch walk. The right-hander turned to his defense to get out of the frame, inducing a tailor-made grounder to shortstop Owen Lee, who turned an inning-ending double play with Garza and Vrabel.
Tech took its final turn to change the landscape of the game in the top of the ninth and produced just when it mattered most. Little Rock picked up a ground out to open the inning before left fielder Landon Smelser ripped a base hit to center field to spark some life into the Golden Eagle offense.
Lee looked like he might be the hero, smashing a full-count offering, but unfortunately, it found the Trojan right fielder on the run for the second out of the frame. With potentially one last chance for Tech to make its mark, catcher Mack Whitcomb took his place next to home plate and channeled the same sort of swing he used for the game-winning, three-run double on Friday.
The sophomore wasted no time jumping into the phone booth and back out with his cape on, uncorking a timely hack on the first pitch he saw. Whitcomb tattooed a hanging breaking ball for a no-doubt, go-ahead, two-run bomb to left-center field, his fifth jack of the season.
Armed with a 9-7 advantage, Brafa recorded the first out of the bottom half with a fly out to center field before Little Rock kept its hopes alive with a double. One last time, Bragga went to his bullpen, turning to sophomore Juan Vargas to close things down.
The righty was just what the doctor ordered, striking out the first batter he faced before inducing a game-ending grounder to Vrabel at first base for an unassisted putout. Vargas earned his second save of the weekend and team-leading fifth of the year with the performance. Brafa picked up his team-best fifth win of the season behind his lone inning of work.
With the bats, Jimenez was the lead dog in the clubhouse for the purple and gold, tallying three hits with three runs and two RBI. Whitcomb tallied a pair of knocks with two ribbies while Vrabel led the squad with three RBI on the day.
The win represented Tech's first 3-0 start to OVC play since 2017, a year the purple and gold finished 41-21 with a 23-7 league-winning mark and a berth to the NCAA Regionals after capturing the OVC Tournament crown.
Before the Golden Eagles return to Cookeville for their first home series of league play of the season, they will first visit Clarksville for a rematch with in-state rival Austin Peay on Tuesday evening at 6:00 p.m. CT.
File photo by Jim Dillon
